Lanka intensifies crackdown on terror suspects; 16 more held
Colombo: The Sri Lankan authorities Thursday intensified their raids with the help of the army and arrested 16 more suspects in connection with the country's worst terror attack on Easter Sunday that killed nearly 360 people and left over 500 injured.
The arrested people were being interrogated at length by the investigation sleuths in connection with the bombings.
Nine suicide bombers, believed to be the members of a local extremist group National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ), carried out a series of devastating blasts that tore through three churches and three luxury hotels.
As many as 359 people have been killed in the attacks while 500 others injured, according to authorities.Officials said that with the arrest of 16 more people on Wednesday, the total number of suspects under police custody has risen to 76.
Many of the arrested people have suspected links to the NTJ, the group blamed for the bombings. However, the NTJ has not claimed responsibility for the attacks.The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attacks and identified suicide bombers who carried out the devastating blasts.
Authorities have deployed thousands of troops to help police carry out search operations.Over 5,000 army personnel have been deployed around the country.
"During the last 24 hours, there have been no major incidents. We have deployed over 6,300 troops. This includes 1,000 from the Airforce and 600 from the Navy," military spokesman Brigadier Sumith Atapattu said.
Meanwhile, a minor explosion happened behind the magistrate's court at Pugoda, the western province town, 40 Kms north of Colombo. There was no immediate report of any casualty.
The Police said that the explosion occurred in a garbage dump and that there were no injuries. A probe has been launched to ascertain the cause.
Search operations of suspected properties, arrests and detention of people and to place road blocks for such operations have been facilitated by the newly-enforced emergency regulations.
The regulations were adopted without a vote in Parliament on Wednesday.The curfew which was imposed at 10 PM on Wednesday was lifted at 4 AM on Thursday.
President Maithripala Sirisena has convened an all-party meeting. He would meet religious leaders. Both parleys are to discuss the attacks dubbed as among the five deadliest terrorist attacks carried out since the 9/11 in the US.
Though Sirisena has asked police chief Pujith Jayasundera and defence ministry secretary Hemasiri Fernando to step down, there was no confirmation if they have resigned.
The police chief's position is an independent post determined by the Constitutional Council. He cannot be constitutionally removed unless he resigns himself or removed thorough a parliamentary procedure, officials said.
Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, the head of the local catholic church, has asked all churches to stop masses until the situation improved, his office said.
On Wednesday, the Sri Lankan government admitted that "major" intelligence lapses led to the horrific coordinated attacks.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
