Sri Lanka declares emergency in wake of terror attack; Police arrest 24 suspects
Sri Lanka declares a state of emergency from Monday midnight following the deadly Easter Sunday attacks; Police arrest 24 suspects; Death toll rises to 290, 8 Indians among those killed.
Sri Lanka will enforce a state of emergency from midnight on Monday in the wake of the deadly Easter blasts that killed 290 people and wounded more than 500 others, enhancing the counter terrorism powers of the security forces.
The decision was made during a meeting of the National Security Council chaired by President Maithripala Sirisena.
The NSC has announced plans to impose a conditional state of emergency from midnight. A statement from the president’s office said the measures would target terrorism and would not limit freedom of expression.
Meanwhile, as many as 87 bomb detonators were found on Monday at a bus station in Colombo. The bomb detonators were found at the Central Colombo bus station in Pettah area.
The police initially found 12 bomb detonators scattered on the ground. A further search revealed 75 more.
On Easter Sunday, a string of eight powerful blasts, including suicide attacks, struck churches and luxury hotels frequented by foreigners in Sri Lanka, killing 290 people, including 8 Indians, and shattering a decade of peace in the island nation since the end of the brutal civil war with the LTTE.
