Death toll in Sri Lanka terror spree jumps to 290, about 500 wounded

At least 290 people were killed in a series of blasts in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, updated casualty figures confirm. The government plans to hold a security council meeting to assess the threat level in the country.

In addition, around 500 people received various injuries when eight coordinated blasts struck churches and hotels in the country, as thousands celebrated Easter Sunday, police said on Monday morning, updating the body count from 207 to 290 victims.

At least 32 foreigners were among those killed. They included American, British, Turkish, Indian, Chinese, Danish, Dutch and Portuguese nationals.

So far security forces have identified and detained 24 suspects allegedly connected with the bombings, which targeted three churches and four luxury hotels. The eighth blast went off inside a house during a security operation later in the afternoon. Three police officers were killed in that explosion. A ninth bomb, apparently targeting Colombo’s international airport, was destroyed in a controlled explosion later in the day.

Even though a curfew, introduced in the wake of the unprecedented terror spree, was lifted on Monday, tight security measures remained in place, with armed military personnel deployed. So far there have been no claims of responsibility for the attacks.

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