Sri Lankan riots prompt state of emergency

A 10-day state of emergency has been declared in Sri Lanka after sectarian violence between Buddhists and Muslims left a man dead, government officials said yesterday.

The body of a Muslim man was found in the ashes of a building after mobs set fire to shops and a mosque in the Kandy region.

President Maithripala Sirisena said security services had been empowered to deal with “criminal elements” on the island. Tensions boiled over after Buddhist groups accused Muslims of forcing people to convert to Islam.