At least 138 reported dead, hundreds injured as explosions hit Sri Lankan churches and hotels

ΣΧΟΛΙΟ ΙΣΤΟΛΟΓΙΟΥ : Tα ίδια καθίκια είναι όλοι τους, Μουσουλμάνοι, Χριστιανοί, Βουδιστές, Παγανιστές, Αθειστές, Μασόνοι,Φασίστες, Κομμουνιστές, Βασιλικοί, Χουντικοί ,μπλέ πράσινοι και ρόζ κόκκοι. Μην ψάχνεται κάποιοι «καλούς» και «κακούς»…. ως ψυχές ΔΕΝ είσαστε άγιοι, ΔΕΝ ήρθατε στον πλανήτη των αγίων! Το δίποδο που κατοικεί στον πλανήτη, λίγες φορές στην ιστορία κατάφερε να γίνει....άνθρωπος.!
Υ.Γ- Συμπληρωματικό.....Οι δύο φωτιές ,η μια στην Γαλλία στην εκκλησία παναγία των παρισίων , και η φωτιά στην εκκλησία στην Σρί Λάνκα ΣΧΕΤΙΖΟΝΤΑΙ...μπήκαν από το ίδιο κέντρο-ιερατείο...και η υπόθεση θα έχει συνέχεια. Αυτό που θέλουν να επαναφέρουν είναι το ΠΟΛΙΤΕΥΜΑ ΤΟΥ ΣΕΤ-ΤΥΦΩΝΑ για να έρθει αυτό...πρέπει να πεθάνουν  όλες οι άλλες θρησκείες.!!!

Easter Sunday bomb blasts at three Sri Lankan churches and three luxury hotels killed about 138 people and injured more than 400, following a lull in major attacks since the end of the civil war 10 years ago.

Key points:

• A total of seven sites were targeted, including Christian churches and luxury hotels
• The attacks come almost 10 years after the end of a bloody civil war
• There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks

More than 50 people were killed in St Sebastian's gothic-style Catholic church in Katuwapitiya, north of Colombo, a police official told Reuters, with pictures showing bodies on the ground, blood on the pews and a destroyed roof.
Media reported 25 people were also killed in an attack on an evangelical church in Batticaloa in the country's eastern province.
Another attack targeted parishioners at St Anthony's Shrine in central Colombo, but the death toll there is unclear.
The three hotels hit were the Shangri-La Colombo, Kingsbury Hotel in Colombo and the Cinnamon Grand Colombo. It was unclear whether there were any casualties in the hotels.
Police now report that a seventh blast has struck in Dehiwela, near Colombo.

Nine foreigners were among the dead, the officials said.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe summoned his national security council for an emergency meeting.

"I strongly condemn the cowardly attacks on our people today. I call upon all Sri Lankans during this tragic time to remain united and strong," he said in a tweet.

"Please avoid propagating unverified reports and speculation. The government is taking immediate steps to contain this situation."

A dream of reconciliation

As Sri Lanka takes firm but slow steps towards ethnic and national reconciliation, there's a local effort underway in Australia.

The violence is the worst since Sri Lanka's bloody civil war ended a decade ago.
News agency the Associated Press reported that a senior official said at least two of the blasts were suspected to have been caused by suicide bombers.
A spokesperson from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) told the ABC the "Australian High Commission in Colombo is making urgent enquiries with local authorities to determine the welfare of any Australians affected".
DFAT added anyone concerned for the welfare of family and friends in the area should attempt to contact them directly, or call DFAT's Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 (within Australia) or +61 2 6261 3305 (from overseas).
Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne confirmed she had spoken to Australia's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, David Holly.

Photo: Police have been stationed around the explosion sites. (Reuters: Dinuka Liyanawatte)

"I am deeply shocked and saddened by the targeted attacks in places of worship and celebration on Easter Sunday," she wrote on Twitter.

Tamils struggle to rebuild lives

As Sri Lanka's government moves towards reconciliation, many Tamils in the war-torn Jaffna province remain in poverty.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks in a country that has experienced sporadic bursts of intense violence in recent history due to a prolonged conflict involving the Tamil Tigers — a separatist group that fought for independence for the country's ethnic Tamil minority.
The group was listed by the US Department of State as a foreign terrorist organisation in 1997.
The group's official insurgency was brought to a bloody end in 2009, but the UN's special rapporteur on torture, Juan E Mendez, said atrocities continued after the end of the conflict.
Current President Maithripala Sirisena promised reconciliation and the persecution of war crimes when he took power in 2015.

Christian worshippers targeted

Photo: Soldiers stationed outside St Anthony's Shrine following the blast. (Reuters: Dinuka Liyanawatte)

The attacks happened during Easter Sunday services.
Alex Agileson, who was near St Anthony's when the bomb exploded, said buildings in the surrounding area shook with the blast.

Photo: The attacks appeared to target the country's Christians, who make up 7.4 per cent of Sri Lanka. (AP: Eranga Jayawardena)

St Sebastian's Church posted pictures of destruction inside the church on its Facebook page, and requested help from the public.
Christians make up 7.4 per cent of the predominantly Buddhist country's total population of 22.4 million. An estimated 82 per cent of Sri Lankan Christians belong to the Roman Catholic Church.

Photo: Priests walk into the badly-damaged St Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade church, Colombo. (Reuters: Dinuka Liyanawatte)

Last year, there were 86 verified incidents of discrimination, threats and violence against Christians, according to the National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka (NCEASL), which represents more than 200 churches and other Christian organisations.
In its 2018 report on Sri Lanka's human rights, the US State Department noted that some Christian groups and churches reported they had been pressured to end worship activities after authorities classified them as "unauthorised gatherings".

Photo: Sri Lanka was rocked by a series of coordinated explosions on Easter Sunday. (Facebook: St. Sebastian's Church - Waga, Sri Lanka)

ABC/wires