The police stated that three Catholic churches were hit by blasts in Sri Lanka on Sunday during Easter mass, as well as three large hotels – the Cinnamon Grand, Kingsbury, and Shangri-La. The government, led by the prime minister, has announced an emergency meeting to address the explosions.
St. Anthony’s Shrine in the Kochchikade district of Colombo and St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo have been hit by the blasts, as well as Zion Church in the eastern city of Batticaloa. Sri Lankan state-run newspaper Daily News reported that 129 people have been killed and almost 500 others injured.
At the same time, channel News TV reported that the death toll has risen to at least 185, adding that Easter services in Colombo have been cancelled.
Police spokesperson Ruwan Gunasekera said that the injured were being evacuated while security forces have cordoned off the areas to conduct search operations.
No organisation has claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to Al Jazeera, the explosions took place almost simultaneously, with the first one in Colombo, and two others occurring within half an hour.
The source in the police told AP that authorities suspect at least two of the blasts were caused by suicide bombers.
The tweet says it shows the results of the blast at St. Anthony’s Shrine in Kochchikade.
“Sec Defence and I am at Kochchikade church. Also was at ShangriLa n Kingsbury. PM is on his way from Bentota. Emergency meeting called in a few minutes. Rescue operations underway”, Sri Lankan Minister of Economic Reforms and Public Distribution Harsha De Silva wrote on Twitter, noting that there are foreign citizens among those killed in the blasts. “Please stay calm and indoors”, he added.
About 1.2 million or 6 percent of the Sri Lankan population belongs to the Catholic faith, while the country is mainly Buddhist. In 1995, at a ceremony in Colombo, Pope John Paul II beatified early missionary Father Joseph Vaz who is known as the Apostle of Ceylon.
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