Suspects still at large as Isis claims attacks
As the death toll from the Easter bombings in Sri Lanka rose to 359 yesterday, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility and released images that purported to show the attackers, while the country’s prime minister warned that several suspects armed with explosives were still at large.
Another top government official said the suicide bombings at the churches, hotels and other sites were carried out by Islamic fundamentalists in apparent retaliation for the New Zealand mosque massacres last month.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said investigators were still determining the extent of the bombers’ foreign links.
Sri Lankan authorities have blamed the attacks on National Towheed Jamaar, a little-known Islamic extremist group. Its leader, alternately known as Mohammed Zahran or Zahran Hashmi, became known to Muslim leaders three years ago for his incendiary speeches online.
Isis’s Aamaq news agency released an image purporting to show the leader of the attackers, standing amid seven others whose faces were covered. The group did not provide any other evidence for its claim.
A police spokesman said another 18 suspects had been arrested, raising the total to 58.
In an address to parliament yesterday, Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardene said ‘‘weakness’’ within Sri Lanka’s security apparatus led to the failure to prevent the nine bombings.
In a live address to the nation, President Maithripala Sirisena said he also was kept in the dark on the intelligence about the planned attacks, and vowed to ‘‘take stern action’’ against the officials who failed to share the information. He also pledged ‘‘a complete restructuring’’ of the security forces.
Wijewardene said the government had evidence that the bombings were carried out ‘‘by an Islamic fundamentalist group’’ in retaliation for the March 15 mosque shootings in Christchurch, although he did not disclose what the evidence was.
One of the suicide bombers involved in the attacks studied in Australia, officials have confirmed.
‘‘We believe one of the suicide bombers studied in the UK and maybe later on did his postgraduate (degree) in Australia before coming back to settle in Sri Lanka,’’ Wijewardene said. He confirmed that Australian intelligence agencies were helping with the investigation, alongside Interpol and British security authorities.