At least 52 people died and over 300 others were injured when blasts rocked three churches and three hotels in the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo.
The explosion hit three catholic churches St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade, St. Anthony’s Church in Negombo and at St. Sebestian’s Church in Katuwapitiya, Katana.
The luxury five star hotels that were targeted were Kingsbury, Shangri-La and Cinnamon Grand Hotels in Colombo.
All the bombs seem to have gone off at the same time, around 8:45 am local time.
The nature of the explosives used in the blasts were still unknown.
The injured were rushed to the Colombo National Hospital.
The Churches were crowded due to Easter Sunday, while the hotels that were targeted had many foreign guests. Reports say that about 25 foreign nationals were killed in these blasts.
UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office have issued a travel advice on Sri Lanka after multiple bomb explosions. Following the blasts India, Sri Lanka’s closest neighbour were monitoring the situation. India’s High Commission in a via twitter shared helpline numbers for Indians citizens seeking assistance.
Explosions have been reported in Colombo and Batticaloa today. We are closely monitoring the situation. Indian citizens in need of assistance or help and for seeking clarification may call the following numbers : +94777903082 +94112422788 +94112422789
— India in Sri Lanka (@IndiainSL) April 21, 2019
An emergency meeting of the Sri Lankan government has been called, while the rescue operations were still underway.
This is a developing story, more updates to follow.
Source : Various