At least 207 people were killed and 450 injured this Sunday, April 21, in a series of explosions in luxury hotels and churches in Sri Lanka in the midst of Easter celebration, police said. Eight people were arrested but the wave of attacks had not been claimed at the end of the day.
- There are over 450 injured in these exceptionally violent attacks.
- Eight people have been arrested in connection with the wave of attacks, according to the Prime Minister.
- Several dozen foreigners are among the victims, including the British.
- A curfew has been declared for an indefinite period.
Follow the live of the event
SUNDAY 21 APRIL
9:45 p.m.
This direct devoted to the attacks in Sri Lanka on this Easter day is coming to an end . Thanks for following him.
The recap of what we know tonight about the eight explosions can be read here.
9:43 p.m.
French tour operators in contact with almost all of their customers in Sri Lanka . “We were able to have contact with almost all of our customers scattered throughout the island,” René-Marc Chikli, president of the French union of companies in the sector (Seto ). He spoke at the end of a crisis meeting with the main tour operators planning the destination. “No tour operator has declared having any damage whatsoever with customers,” he added. There are around 400 of them on a package tour in Sri Lanka now.
8:45 p.m.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs is listening . The official France Diplomatie account posted two support numbers on Twitter, one in France and one in Sri Lanka:
6:53 p.m.
Britons among the victims. “We can confirm that British nationals are among those killed in the horrific attacks in Sri Lanka today,” a spokesperson for the British Foreign Office said. Their number has not yet been specified.
6:04 p.m.
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, announced that the Eiffel Tower would be turned off this evening at midnight “to pay tribute to the victims” , as is done regularly in such circumstances.
6:02 p.m.
“There have been continuing acts of violence or intimidation against the Christian community in Sri Lanka in recent years, ” Rucki Fernando, a human rights defender, told AFP. But “ we haven’t seen anything of this magnitude or magnitude before. The governments of Sri Lanka have turned a blind eye to violence against minorities – both Christian and Muslim – which has been on the rise in recent years, ” he said.
5:41 p.m.
According to information from the Sri Lankan Prime Minister, eight people have been arrested in connection with the wave of attacks. “So far the names we have are local” but investigators are trying to find out if they have any “foreign links” , the head of government said in a television address, without giving further details.
17:33
The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, “scandalized” , recalls “the sacred character of all places of worship. “. He hopes that the perpetrators of these acts will be brought to justice quickly.
5:26 p.m.
Course of the facts, leads of the investigation, reactions … At the end of the afternoon we take stock of what we know about the eight explosions.
The interior of a church hit by an explosion in Negombo
4:47 p.m.
On Twitter, Barack Obama evokes “attacks against humanity” during this day “ dedicated to love, redemption and renewal”. The former President of the United States addresses his prayers to the victims and gives his support to the people of Sri Lanka.
4:22 p.m.
Strong images are collected by the photographers sent on site. Here, a woman who lost a loved one in the explosion of the Kochchikade church in Colombo.
4:00 p.m.
Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lankan Prime Minister reacted on twitter: “I strongly condemn today’s cowardly attacks against our people. I call on Sri Lankans to remain united and strong in these times of tragedy. “
3:04 p.m.
Chancellor Angela Merkel laments that “people gathered to celebrate Easter have been deliberately targeted” and believes that “the religious hatred and intolerance which have been so terribly manifested today must not prevail.”
2:55 p.m.
According to Sri Lankan media, seven suspects were arrested during a search of a house in Colombo.
2:30 p.m.
The toll is growing with 207 dead more than 450 injured according to the latest police figures. This assessment takes into account the victims of the eight explosions that occurred on the island, said police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera at a press conference. “We cannot confirm if it was suicide attacks ,” he said, adding that three people had been arrested.
13:36
The Archbishop of Colombo on Sunday called on the Sri Lankan government to “punish without mercy” those responsible for the attacks.
“I would like to ask the government to conduct a solid and impartial investigation to determine who is responsible for this act and also to punish them mercilessly, because only animals can behave like this,” Archbishop Malcom Ranjit said?
He nevertheless called on his fellow citizens to “peace and harmony” and “not to do justice themselves”.
13:36
The hotels hit are the Shangri-La Colombo, Kingsbury Hotel and Cinnamon Grand Colombo, as well as the one in Dehiwela, near the zoo.
It is not yet known whether there are any casualties in these establishments.
13:31
President Maithripala Sirisena tasked a special police and army unit to investigate who carried out the attacks. The army has been deployed, and security has been tightened at Colombo International Airport, an army spokesperson said.
All schools will remain closed Monday and Tuesday, Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said.
13:25
The Cairo-based institution of Sunni Islam Al-Azhar condemned “the terrorist attack in Sri Lanka”. “I cannot imagine that a human being could target peaceful people on their feast day”, commented the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, via a tweet on the account of the institution.
13:21
At least two suicide bombers took part in the series of explosions that killed at least 160 people in Sri Lanka on Sunday, which the government has not yet clarified, according to police and witnesses.
In Orugodawatta, a suicide bomber killed three police officers in the early afternoon by blowing himself up in a building in this northern suburb of the capital Colombo.
Police officers entered a house in the town for a search operation when the suspect blew himself up, police told an AFP photographer who arrived shortly after.
The explosion caused the ceiling to collapse, which buried members of the security forces.
1:10 p.m.
According to BFM TV, the Foreign Ministry has opened a crisis unit to deal with the explosions in Sri Lanka. We have no information, at this time, on the presence or not of French among the victims.
1:00 p.m.
Donald Trump, the President of the United States, expressed his “condolences” to the Sri Lankan people. He said the United States was ready to help if Sri Lanka requested it.
12:50
International reactions are also linked. Prime Minister Theresa May in particular, whose country colonized Sri Lanka (1796-1948), denounces “truly appalling acts of violence (…)” and believes that “we must unite to ensure that no one must never have to practice faith in fear “.
12:39
AFP now estimates that the death toll stands at at least 160.
12:39
A suicide bomber killed three policemen in Sri Lanka by blowing themselves up in a building in a northern suburb of the capital Colombo, police said. The explosion in the early afternoon in Orugodawatta was the eighth of the day to hit the South Asian island.
12:33
President Emmanuel Macron strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka on Sunday.
12:30 p.m.
About 1.2 million Catholics live in Sri Lanka, which has a total population of 21 million. The country has about 70% Buddhists, 12% Hindus, 10% Muslims and 7% Christians.
Catholics are seen as a unifying force because they are found among Tamils as well as among the Sinhalese majority.
Some Christians, however, are frowned upon for supporting outside investigations into the crimes of the Sri Lankan army against Tamils during the civil war that ended in 2009. According to the United Nations, the conflict from 1972 to 2009 killed between 80,000 and 100,000.
12:25
Pope Francis said he was “close to all the victims of such cruel violence” and condemns “the attacks”. He says he is on the side of Christians struck by “mourning and pain”.
12:21
The two main news agencies, Agence France Presse and Reuters, do not give the same figures on victims in Sri Lanka, which is a fairly common case. A few details:
- One hundred and thirty-eight people were killed and more than 400 others injured, according to Reuters;
- At least 158 people have been killed and more than 300 injured, according to AFP;
- According to Reuters, only 9 foreigners are among the victims;
- According to AFP, 35 foreigners died in these attacks.
The numbers should harmonize as we approach a final balance sheet.
12:15
Marine Le Pen, president of the National Gathering, did not fail to react on Twitter where she presented her “thoughts (which) once again go to persecuted Christians around the world and particularly to those of Sri Lanka, bereaved by d ‘heinous attacks and targeted for their faith “.
12:09
The statuette of a virgin broken in two by the explosion in the Church of Saint Anthony in Colombo.
11:58 am
The head of the national police, Pujuth Jayasundara, had alerted his services ten days ago indicating that an Islamist movement called NTJ (National Thowheeth Jama’ath) was planning “suicide attacks against important churches and the Indian High Commission” . The NTJ became known last year in connection with acts of vandalism committed against Buddhist statues. Buddhism is the majority religion on the island.
11:50 a.m.
The eighth explosion, unconfirmed by Reuters, allegedly took place at an unspecified location in Orugodawatta, a northern suburb of Colombo.
11:48 a.m.
On terrible images, we can guess the power of the explosions, especially the one that took place in the Church of St. Anthony in Colombo.
11:45 a.m.
The Sri Lankan government has also chosen to cut off the country’s access to social media and messaging services.
11:43 am
The French political class is already reacting to the Sri Lankan events, in a general condemnation of the violence. On the right, François-Xavier Bellamy, head of the Republicans for the Europeans list, said he was “upset” by these “attacks” and, “in this mourning Easter, united to all the victims, and to their families” .
11:37
The defense ministry announces an indefinite curfew from 6 p.m. local time.
11:35 am
Find all the information on the explosions and the results of this morning in this article:
Sri Lanka. An eighth explosion in Colombo, provisional death toll of 158, including 35 foreigners
11:31
In all, eight explosions took place this Easter Sunday in Colombo , the economic capital of Sri Lanka. Two types of places were targeted: luxury hotels and churches where Easter masses were celebrated. The last two explosions, which killed at least 2 people, took place in hotels in the late morning (French time).
11:26
Hello and welcome to this live where we will follow the attacks that are taking place in Sri Lanka. Several churches and luxury hotels have been targeted by explosions that have killed more than 100 people.
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