SRI LANKA. (THECOUNT) — Sri Lanka’s defense minister said seven suspects were arrested Sunday following a series of eight bombings that targeted hotels and churches during Easter services throughout the country, killing over 200 people and wounding hundreds more in what he called a terror attack by religious extremists, reports TimesOfIsrael.
At least 200 people were killed and 500 others injured in a series of bomb blasts that hit three churches and three luxury hotels in Sri Lanka, according to local media reports.
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Sri Lankan Defense Minister Ruwan Wijewardena described the attacks as a terrorist incident and blamed religious extremists.
Wijewardena did not release any additional information about the arrests of the seven suspects.
An explosion ripped through Sri Lanka St Anthony’s Shrine in the capital Colombo, causing casualties among worshippers.
A Sri Lanka security official said six near-simultaneous blasts hit the churches and hotels.
Eye-witnesses say buildings in the surrounding area shook with force of the blast and 50 people so far have reportedly been taken to Colombo’s main hospital.
A second explosion hit St Sebastian’s Church in Negombo, north of Colombo, report SkyNews.
Sky News’ Asia correspondent Tom Cheshire said: “It suggests a coordinated, targeted attack on Christians. It is very unusual for Sri Lanka.
“It’s very, very worrying as people are trying to celebrate Easter.”
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Geo quick facts: Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia, located in the Indian Ocean to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal and to the southeast of the Arabian Sea – Wikipedia.