REBECCA SPEARE-COLE Courtesy Evening Standard

Sri Lankan Christian devotees pray in Colombo, a week after a series of bomb blasts targeting churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka ( AFP/Getty Images )

Sri Lankan security officials have warned that Islamist militantsbehind Easter Sunday’s suicide bombings are planning further attacks and could be dressed in military uniform.

Security sources say the militants were targeting five locations for attacks today, as the archbishop of Colombo complained about insufficient security around churches.

In a letter to the government and officials on Monday the head of the police ministerial security division said: “There could be another wave of attacks.”

“The relevant information further notes that persons dressed in military uniforms and using a van could be involved in the attacks.”

There were no attacks on Sunday and security across Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka has been ramped up.

Scores of suspected Islamists have been arrested since the April 21 attacks on hotels and churches that killed more than 250 people, including 40 foreign nationals.

The government has also banned women from wearing face veils under an emergency law that was put in place after the attacks.

There were concerns within the Muslim community that the ban could fuel tensions in the multi-ethnic nation.

But government officials said it would help security forces identify people as a hunt for any remaining attackers and their support network continues across the Indian Ocean island.

The Archbishop of Colombo, Malcolm Ranjith, said that security had not been sufficiently stepped up around churches.

We are not satisfied with the security arrangements and urge authorities to ensure our safety,” he told reporters.

Authorities suspect members of two little known groups – National Thawheedh Jamaath (NTJ) and Jammiyathul Millathu Ibrahim – of carrying out the Easter attacks, though Islamic State has claimed responsibility.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said a tight-knit group of people was involved, mostly close friends and families. They spoke face-to-face, possibly to evade electronic surveillance.

“They were small enough that they were not using normal communications, instead meeting each other,” Wickremesinghe told Reuters.

He added the coordinated bombings, the type of explosives used and the tightly guarded plot suggested the bombers had guidance.

“ISIS has claimed, we also felt there has to be some international links,” he said, referring to Islamic State.

Authorities believe Zahran Hashim, the founder of NTJ, was the mastermind and one of the nine suicide bombers.

One military source told Reuters that five sets of white attire commonly worn by Buddhists when visiting temples were recovered from a safe house in the east, the site of a gun battle on Friday that killed Zahranâ’s father and his two brothers.

His wife and daughter escaped an explosion with minor injuries, hospital staff and police said.

Susan Ormiston · CBC News ·

Security officials trying to root out any remaining members of extremist group

Susan Ormiston · CBC News · Posted: Apr 29, 2019 5:00 PM ET | Last Updated: an hour ago

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe acknowledges that ‘the government machinery was faulty’ and warnings from intelligence agencies were not implemented before the Easter Sunday attacks. (Lily Martin/CBC)

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe vows his country can eliminate the threats extremists pose following the Easter Sunday attacks but admits his greatest immediate fear is that a “lone ranger” may evade authorities and blow himself up in a public place.

“The organization is broken, people are on the run,” he told CBC News in a wide-ranging interview, “but some of them do have explosives and someone may out of desperation do an act.”

Wickremesinghe said that for the next few days or weeks, he worries most that one of those individuals may not turn up in surveillance inquiries or isn’t detained before acting independently.

“My fear is that one of the guys on the run, the lone ranger, doesn’t appear and decides to … commit suicide by blasting himself in public”

Sri Lankan security officials warned lawmakers recently there could be other attacks and militants may be dressed in uniforms and using a van. A letter seen by Reuters News said there could be “another wave of attacks Sunday or Monday.”

Security and army officials are sweeping the country trying to root out any remaining members of the extremist group, which killed more than 250 people on Easter Sunday in six separate attacks.

In Negombo Monday, an army truck pulled up in front of a small supermarket. About a dozen soldiers jumped out, lining the street as five others entered the shop.

Security forces gather outside a supermarket in Negombo on Monday after searching the premises and questioning staff. (Lily Martin/CBC)

With the entire country on edge, staff at an international hotel across the street watched with worried expressions. At least one man was questioned, his identity details recorded before the authorities left the scene.

“The nets are closing in and let’s hope and pray that the security forces succeed,” Wichremesinghe told the CBC during the half-hour interview Sunday at his official residence, Temple Trees, in central Colombo.

“Then we’ve got to put into effect measures to ensure it doesn’t happen again, that information comes to be acted upon.”

Leaders criticized

The prime minister and President Maithripala Sirisena have come under intense criticism for mishandling repeated warnings from intelligence agencies, notably Indian, that an attack might be imminent.

“The security warnings were issued by the Ministry of Defence to the relevant security agencies and the circulars went down,” Wickremesinghe said. “The real issue is why were they not implemented.”

Wickremesinghe said that is being investigated.

Catholic churches across Sri Lanka remain closed and the archbishop of Sri Lanka decreed no public mass on Sunday following the leak of a security document that stated churches were a major target a week after the Easter Sunday attacks. (Lily Martin/CBC)

But pressed as to why, as prime minister, he did not know about repeated serious warnings, he accepted accountability.

“My being aware is separate from the fact that the security system had failed to implement it — some of them didn’t take it seriously.

“But yes, we have to acknowledge the fact that the government machinery was faulty.”

A personal and political rift between the prime minister and the president is being blamed by many Sri Lankans for undermining national security. The president fired the prime minister last year but was forced to reinstate him after pressure from the Supreme Court. An election is expected before year’s end.

‘Cohabitation governments’

Questioned about the ongoing feud and its possible effect on national security, Wickremesinghe said: “Look, we have cohabitation governments. You all have had coalition governments. You know how it is.

“The fact is all that has strained our cohabitation government would not have mattered if the relevant instructions were carried out and implemented properly. If the tourist hotels were aware, if the churches were aware.”

Worshippers arriving at Mount Lavinia Mosque in Colombo face a security check before being allowed to enter for Friday prayers on April 26, 2019. Muslim leaders had urged people to pray at home amid fears of retaliatory violence. (Lily Martin/CBC)

Sri Lankan Archbishop Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith criticized top leaders in government for feuding during the crisis.

“At a time when the whole country has been affected by a major catastrophe, politicians should stop finding fault with each other,” he said.

• Faith leaders in Sri Lanka fear reprisals but vow to unite country after Easter Sunday attacks

The economic impact of the attacks could cripple the tourism industry — at least for awhile.

Sri Lanka’s Tourism Bureau warned Monday that tourist arrivals in Colombo could drop by 50 per cent over the next two months, with 30 per cent fewer travellers predicted in other parts of the country, according to chairman Kishu Gomes.

‘Look at the travel advisories’

But the prime minister predicted a smaller impact long-term. Sri Lanka is in its low tourist season. He could not, however, firmly recommend that travellers come now.

“We aren’t saying not to come. Neither are we pushing them to come. It’s up to them to look at the travel advisories.

“You have to take your own decision but in the next few weeks we will stabilize the situation and then we can look forward to the next tourist season in August.”

Damage from the blast surrounds a statue of St. Jude at St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo. More than 100 people were killed here in the terrorist attack on Easter Sunday. (Lily Martin/CBC)

In an otherwise dark week, Wickremesinghe said he took relief from the fact there was not significant community backlash causing more violence in the critical first three days after the attacks.

But he shook his head sadly, saying: “It’s been terrible.” People are angry and worried, recalling the ongoing violence and corresponding security measures during Sri Lanka’s nearly three decades of civil war that ended in 2009.

• ‘They have no humanity’: This woman lost her parents to Sri Lanka’s deadliest blast

“We’ve gone through this before so let’s get into it, but let’s hope we get out of it quickly. I certainly don’t want 30 years to take place before the end of this,” said Wickremesinghe.

“We are not on the sidelines of jihadi terrorism. We’re in the middle of it. We are the last of our region to suffer this. India has had it, Pakistan has had it, Bangladesh, Maldives and Sri Lanka has now been affected. But we want to root it out.”

WATCH | The full interview with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe:

CBC News’They are on the run’ WATCH00:00 21:15Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe discusses the ongoing search for suspects associated with the Easter Sunday suicide attacks that killed more than 250 people and the possibility of another attack in an interview with CBC’s Susan Ormiston. 21:15

by Eyal Zisser / Israel Hayom / JNS.org

The jihadist war being waged by radical Islamist groups across the globe has never stopped at the gates of holy sites and places of worship. Indeed, worshipers in these places have become legitimate and convenient targets for jihadists in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia — as we learned from the recent massacre in Sri Lanka, and in recent years in Europe as well.

Minority communities, mostly Christians, are persecuted in large portions of the Islamic world, and the tolerance once shown to Jews and Christians has now been replaced by extremism, threatening the continued existence of Christianity and other religions in these places. Some 70 years after the end of Jewish life in Iraq and Syria due to persecution and expulsions, the Middle East’s Christian community is now disappearing.

The Islamic State has engaged in the systematic destruction of churches in the territories it has held, but churches are attacked and often burned as a matter of routine in other Arab and Muslim countries, which are struggling, despite the efforts of their rulers, to protect their Christian minorities. The extremists also destroy mosques that don’t share their radical views and have targeted them in hundreds of attacks within the framework of jihad.

In light of these attacks, Europe’s voice has barely been heard. Due to their desire to maintain political correctness, European governments have failed to stand in defense of Christian and other communities in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, out of fear they will be perceived as enemies of Islam.

APRIL 29, 2019 3:26 PM0

New York Times Is ‘Cesspool,’ Israeli Ambassador to US Says

Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer, has called The New York Times a cesspool of hostility towards Israel.” In remarks…

It’s interesting to note that radical Islam has found a partner in the form of the neo-Nazi far-right, whose members are behind hate crimes against Jewish synagogues, but also against Muslim mosques, the most recent case being in New Zealand. In the Israeli context, these two camps are joined by the far-left, which is flooding Europe with a tidal wave of anti-Israel and antisemitic sentiment.

Jihad, however, made its way to European shores a while ago. It has been reported in recent years that in France alone, many churches have been attacked by extremists, the majority of them Muslim. The authorities in Europe are silent on this too. They apparently believe the most effective way to contend with extremism and terrorism is to ignore and contain it, in the hope that it will simply disappear.

The question of Europe’s approach to radical Islam has resurfaced in the wake of the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, one of France’s most important historical and religious symbols. The reason for the blaze is still unknown, and it could be that a technical mishap — the site was under renovation — was behind the fire.

Yet it was fascinating to see the outrage in Europe toward anyone who hinted at the possibility of arson, perhaps by extremists. No one is allowed to suggest this possibility, despite the track record of church attacks. This is also the approach, particularly in France, to any terrorist attack that takes place on the continent, where the jihadist aspect is blurred and disregarded.

Europe still believes that burying its head in the sand is the best way to cope with the challenge posed by radical Islam, but time and again we see that denying the existence of a problem doesn’t solve it.

We can assume the problem will only worsen in light of Europe’s failure to absorb the waves of Muslim immigration to the continent. These immigrants currently represent less than five percent of the entire population of Europe, but that could spike due to low natural birth rates among native Europeans. And the ratio of Muslims in some large European cities, such as Paris or Brussels, is already around 20 percent or higher. An effort to absorb these immigrants and accommodate them across the continent — while also fighting radical Islam with determination — is the order of the day, but in Europe, no one is ready to acknowledge this challenge, let alone tackle it.

Eyal Zisser is a lecturer in the Middle East History Department at Tel Aviv University. A version of this column first appeared in Israel Hayom.

By Samiha Nettikkara Courtesy BBC

A ban on face coverings in public has come into effect in Sri Lanka, following a series of suicide attacks on Easter Sunday, in which at least 250 people were killed.

Any face garment that “hinders identification” was being banned to ensure national security, the office of President Maithripala Sirisena said.

• Sri Lanka attacks: Face coverings banned
• Hijab, niqab, burka: Guide to Muslim headscarves

Those who support the ban say it’s vital for public safety and encourages assimilation of ethnic and religious minorities.

But rights groups say it discriminates against Muslim women, some of whom view these garments as a religious obligation.

Where else in the world has adopted similar bans?

Europe

France was the first European country to ban the full-face Islamic veil in public places, in 2011.

The ban was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights in July 2014.

A ban against a full-face veil led to protests in Denmark when it came into effect, in August 2018. The law says that “anyone who wears a garment that hides the face in public” will have to pay 1,000 krone (£118; $157), with fines 10 times higher for repeat offenders.

The Senate in the Netherlands passed a law in June 2018 banning face coverings in public buildings such as schools and hospitals, and on public transport. It does not apply on public streets.

In Germany it’s illegal to have any face coverings while driving. Germany’s lower house of parliament has also approved a partial ban for judges, civil servants and soldiers. Women wearing a full-face veil are also required to uncover their faces for identification purposes.

A ban on full-face veils in public spaces such as courts and schools came into force in Austria in October 2017.

A law banning the full-face veil came into effect in Belgium in July 2011. The law bans any clothing that obscures the identity of the wearer in places such as parks and on the street.

A bill was passed in Norway in June 2018 banning clothing covering the face from being worn at educational institutions.

Bulgaria‘s parliament passed a bill in 2016 to fine and cut the benefits of women who cover their faces in public.

There are also some restrictions in Luxembourg, in specific public locations such as hospitals, courts and public buildings.

Some European countries have bans in specific cities or regions.

This includes Italy, where several towns have bans on face-covering veils, including Novara, run by the anti-immigration Northern League, which imposed its ban in 2010.

In Spain, the city of Barcelona announced a ban on face coverings in 2010, in some public spaces such as municipal offices, public markets and libraries.

Face veils are also banned in public areas in some regions of Switzerland.

Africa

In 2015, multiple suicide bombings by women wearing full-face veils in the region prompted full-face coverings to be banned in public places in Chad, Gabon, Cameroon‘s northern region, Niger‘s Diffa region and the Republic of Congo.

In Algeria, public officials have been banned from wearing full-face veils in the workplace since October 2018.

China

The wearing of veils in public places – and “abnormally” long beards – are prohibited in China’s Xinjiang region.

Xinjiang is home to ethnic Uighur Muslims, who say they face discrimination.

The region has seen violent clashes, which the government blames on Islamist militants

Written by Deeptiman Tiwary |New Delhi Courtesy The Indian Express

Investigators, meanwhile, suspect that Hashim broke away from the Lanka-based National Thowheeth Jamaath, which has been blamed for the blasts, to form his own outfit recently.

INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES are tracking over a dozen men from Tamil Nadu and Kerala whose phone numbers were found in the Call Detail Records (CDRs) of Zaharan Hashim, the suspected mastermind behind the Easter Sunday blasts in Sri Lanka, a security official told The Indian Express.

Hashim is believed to have spent close to three months in India, possibly from late last year, and the CDRs pertain to this period and the months since his return to Lanka, the official said. Hashim was among the group of suicide bombers that targeted churches and hotels across Sri Lanka, killing over 250 people.

On Monday, as part of its probe into Hashim’s India links, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested one of the three men from Kerala, who were detained Sunday, on suspicion of being an Islamic State (IS) recruit and for conspiring to commit a terrorist act”.

The agency identified the man arrested as Palakkad resident Riyas Abubakar alias Abu Dujana. He has disclosed that he has been following speeches/videos of Zaharan Hashim… for more than a year and has also followed the speeches of (Islamic preacher) Zakir Naik. He admitted that he wanted to carry out a suicide attack in Kerala,” NIA IG Alok Mittal said.

Investigators, meanwhile, suspect that Hashim broke away from the Lanka-based National Thowheeth Jamaath, which has been blamed for the blasts, to form his own outfit recently.

The group was named Nation of Thowheeth Jamaath, perhaps alluding to the idea of a Caliphate. He got around 35 young men to join him. The suspicion is that it is these people who carried out the attack,” a security official said. The NTJ had issued a statement condemning the blasts.

On Sunday, the NIA arrested Riyas after raiding his house in connection with the 2016 case of 22 Kerala youths leaving for Afghanistan to join the IS — and found that he was allegedly in touch with one among that group.

He has disclosed that he has been in online contact with absconding accused Abdul Rashid Abdulla @ Abu Isa for a long time and has been following his audio clips, including the clip which he had circulated on social media instigating others to carry out terror attacks in India,” an NIA statement said. Abdulla is believed to be in Afghanistan.

According to the NIA, Riyas was also chatting online with Abdul Khayoom alias Abu Khalid who was believed to be in Syria”. Khayoom is an accused in the IS case from Valapattanam linked to the group that left for Afghanistan.

Sources said the Hashim video with Riyas was similar to the one retrieved from the phones of six IS suspects detained in Coimbatore last September. In the video, Hashim is seen asking Muslims to join his cause of forming an Islamic Wilaya (province) in the region,” sources said.

The Coimbatore case was transferred to the NIA last December, and the agency found the video while drafting the chargesheet this year.
The suspect had deleted the video, which was retrieved by forensic experts. The input was shared with the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), which developed it and gave Sri Lanka the specific input on April 4 of an impending attack,” an intelligence official said.

Apart from Riyas in Palakkad, the NIA searched the houses of two others in Kasaragod for their suspected links with the group that left for Afghanistan — some of them via Sri Lanka and Iran.

Apart from the Hashim video, the NIA claimed to have recovered several digital devices, including mobile phones, SIM cards, memory cards, pen drives, diaries with handwritten notes in Arabic and Malayalam, DVDs of Dr Zakir Naik, besides untitled DVDs, CDs with religious speeches, books of Dr Zakir Naik and Syed Kutheb”.

DECCAN CHRONICLE. | BALA CHAUHAN

 This NIA had registered a case in July 2016 after 15 youths has fled away to ISIS. (Representional Image)

Bengaluru: Kerala may reportedly have been the next destination of suicide attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq & Syria (ISIS) homegrown cadres in the southern state, who were reportedly radicalised by the Sri Lanka suicide bomber Hashim Zafran and fugitive preacher Zakir Naik. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday arrested Riyas A. alias Riyas Aboobacker alias Abu Dujana (29), a resident of Palakkad, Kerala in Kasargod in the ISIS (RC No. 02/2016/NIA/KOC) case for conspiring to execute terrorist attacks in Kerala.

Riyas was reportedly inspired by Hashim and Naik. He was in contact with absconding accused Abdul Rashid Abdulla alias Abu Isa for a long time and has been following his audio clips including the clip, which he had circulated on social media platform instigating others to carry out terrorist attacks in India,” said the NIA spokesperson IGP Alok Mittal. Riyas was in touch with Abdul Khayoom alias Abu Khalid, who was also involved  in Valapattanam ISIS case and is believed to be in Syria.

The NIA had earlier received inputs that a group of four persons has been in contact with Abdul Rashid, Ashfaq Majeed, Abdul Khayoom and others, who had earlier migrated to Afghanistan and Syria. After verification, NIA carried out searches at three places (two in Kasaragod and one in Palakkad). Three group members have been interrogated for their ISIS links and their plans.

This NIA had registered a case in July 2016 after 15 youths has fled away to ISIS. Out of them 14 people went to Afghanistan and one person to Syria so far. 

Movement Against Radicalism Courtesy Ceylon Today

The Easter Sunday attacks that took place in Colombo and other parts of the country are being condemned in no uncertain terms. As Muslims living in this country and innumerable generations before us from time immemorial, we, (a large and representative group of Muslim women), condemn these dastardly acts perpetrated on our fellow citizens and the visitors to our country, all of them innocent and unfortunate victims of radical terrorism.

It’s sad on the one hand and unforgivable on the other that, those who claim to be leaders of the Muslim community, as well as a majority of the Muslim politicians from various political parties, did not address the issues that were looming; they did nothing to stem, nay eliminate totally, the growth and rise of Islamic radicalism in this paradise island, Sri Lanka. They were only concerned with their political growth and gain, to the detriment of the healthy growth and gain of the community, Muslims who should be exemplary citizens in a democratic country such as ours. Thus, these so-called leaders now condemning the violence that was perpetrated is paying mere lip service, and akin to closing the stable doors after the horses have bolted.

Today, all Muslims in the country have to bow their heads in shame.

Meanwhile, we wish to categorically state that no Muslim organisation operating in Sri Lanka, comprising males or females or a mix of both as members, can claim to be the representatives of the entire Muslim community. Such claims made in the Media are utterly ludicrous! We have no single body that can make such a claim, period.  We have no leaders we can look up to, be it on the religious or political front. It’s about time that such organisations and individuals shed their claims of leadership, as a majority of the community don’t subscribe to their ideologies or dictates.  

Muslims (from various segments, all of who practise Islam) have lived throughout in peace and harmony with people of other ethnicities and religions, each respecting the others’ faiths and cultures. Granted that there have been occasional conflicts in the past; however, none of them had been due to radicalism. Rather, those had been local conflicts that had been contained by the application of the law, and order restored. While reiterating that Muslims have no individual or organisation that could claim to be the representative of the community at large, we request such persons or bodies to look inward and do some serious soul searching, to ascertain why their so-called leadership is questionable.

We are a movement working to uplift the less fortunate segment of our community, a daunting task, as we receive no funds locally or from overseas for the humanitarian work we carry out, silently, and sans any claims of leadership. We have only one being to look up to, the Almighty, the One above! We pray for the souls lost due to radical terrorism and wish those injured a speedy recovery. Sadly though, they will live the rest of their lives with mental trauma.

(Movement Against Radicalism)

Yohan Perera Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Amending the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) was better than bringing in a new Counter-Terrorism Act (CTA), Archbishop of Colombo Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith said today.

The Cardinal said this in response to a statement made by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday that the Easter Sunday bombings could have been averted had the Counter-Terrorism Act was in force.

It is easier to amend the remaining legislation rather than bringing a new one,” he said.  

Both the Cardinal and Venerable Ittapana Dhammalankara Maha Nayaka Thera expressed their dissatisfaction on the investigations carried out by the government on Easter Sunday bomb attacks and the Presidential Commission appointed to look into the security lapses.

However, they said that they would welcome if a committee headed by Buddhist clergy was appointed to look into the matter as they neither belong to Catholic nor Islamic communities.

Venerable Dhammalankara Thera said the steps taken by the government to investigate and apprehend those behind the bombings were far from satisfactory.

We don’t see that the government had given its utmost attention to pull out the country from the crisis that is prevailing in the country,” the Thera said while highlighting that the government should speak in one voice at this moment. (

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

The Government Intelligence Service has received information on an attack targeting the Buddhist temples by the National Thawheeth Jamaath (NTJ), using female bombers.

The officers of the government intelligence service have found white pairs of skirts and blouses from the house which was raided after the explosion in Sainthamaradu area.

On March 29, 2019 Muslim women had spent Rs.29,000 to purchase nine sets of such clothes from a textile shop in Giriulla.

So far, five sets of white clothes had been found from this house and Intelligence services are continuing their efforts to find the remaining clothes.

The CCTV footage of the shop shows the visuals of these women who purchased clothes from the shop. Meanwhile, the intelligence services raise doubts that this type of clothes had been purchased by them to direct an attack on a temple by female bombers posing as Buddhist devotees. (Wasantha Chnadrapala)

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Senior DIG C.D. Wickremerathne had been appointed as Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) by President Maithripala Sirisena today, President’s Media Unit said.

Former IGP N.K. Illangakoon has been appointed as adviser to the Ministry of Defence.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya was sworn in as the new Chief Justice before the President this morning, while Solicitor General Dappula de Livera has been appointed as the Acting Attorney General.

Additional Auditor General Chulantha Wickramaratne was appointed as the Auditor General.

These officials received their letters of appointment from the President this morning.

Darshana Sanjeewa Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Following the appointment of C.D. Wickremeratne as the acting Inspector General of Police, IGP Pujith Jayasundara has been sent on compulsory leave, sources said.

It was reported that the Law and Order Ministry has ordered that the IGP be sent on compulsory leave.

After the Easter Sunday attacks on April 21, President Maithripala Sirisena asked the IGP to resign.

However, IGP Jayasundara rejected the President’s request. (

Courtesy Adaderana

His Eminence Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith urges that government carry out proper investigations into the terror attacks that took place on Easter Sunday (April 21st).

Take proper legal action in this regard and do not let us take the law into our hands,” the Cardinal said, addressing a press conference held at the Catholic Archbishop’s House today (29).

He called on the political leadership of the country, regardless of their party politics, to reach a common policy concerning national security, he further remarked.

We are not aware of the measures taken by the presidential commission appointed to probe the terror attacks, nor do we know if the commission even assembled,” the Cardinal complained.

Cardinal Ranjith expressed his displeasure over how security matters are being handled presently.

Courtesy Adaderana

Former Army Commander General S. H. Shantha Kottegoda has been appointed as the new Secretary to the Ministry of Defense.

The General received his letter of appointment from President Maithripala Sirisena at the President’s Office, this evening (29).

This is following the resignation of the former Defense Secretary Hemasiri Fernando after he was requested by the President over the failure to prevent the Easter Day bombing despite receiving prior warnings of a possible attack.

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, April 29 (newsin.asia): The Joint Operations Command (JOC) of the tri-forces and the police began to funcion on Monday with Maj.Gen. Sathyapriya Liyanage as its head. But it will be under the overall supervision of the Chief of Defense Staff, Army Commander Mahesh Senanayake said.

All Army, Navy, Air Force and Police areas within the Western Province and Puttalam District have been placed under command to the Overall Operational Command – Colombo for operational purposes with immediate effect, the Army Headquarters said.

In a statement, the Army said Major General Sathyapriya Liyanage, (Commander, Security Forces – West) would function as the Overall Operational Commander in the establishment.

Rear Admiral W.A.S.S Perera of the Navy, Air Vice Marshal W.L.R.P Rodrigo of the Air Force and Superintendent of Police L.K.D Anil Priyantha will function as Coordinating Officers of respective services and the Police in the OOC,” it said.

A communiqué sent to the Ministry of Defence by Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake, Commander of the Army said the Overall Operational Command (OOC) in Colombo will begin its functions under the Chief of Defence Staff with immediate effect.

Sri Lankan News

Person arrested with 25 CDs containing information on ISIS

Courtesy Adaderana

Twenty-five CDs of which the content was on Islamic State (IS) have been seized in Kantale area yesterday (29).

The haul was recovered while in possession of a person feigning as a businessman.

The seizure took place during a raid carried out in Per Aru village, in which six other suspects were also taken into custody.

Three swords have also been seized from a household in the same area.

Meanwhile, the Jamia Manarul Huda Arabic College was searched by the security forces.

Accordingly, several mobile phones, burqas and books containing the activities of the LTTE organization were recovered from the school.

A symbol with two swords painted on a school’s wall was also observed.

SLTJ’s posters for seminars targetting O/L students found in Kaduruwela

Courtesy Adaderana

An individual has been arrested in Kaduruwela town along with a poster published by the Sri Lanka Thawheed Jama’ath (SLTJ) in 2018.

The poster was published for a seminar conducted by the SLTJ for Ordinary Level students, the police said.

Meanwhile, three persons employed at private companies in the same area, who were unable to prove their identities.

High-sensitivity device recovered from house in Kaleliya

Courtesy Adaderana

A suspicious three-wheeler has been seized while its driver and two passengers, a woman and a child, were taken into custody in a search operation carried out by the police.

Upon searching the three-wheeler at a roadblock in Veyangoda, the police had recovered a passport that did not belong to either of the individuals who were inside the vehicle at the time.

Further questioning revealed that the passport belongs to a person involved in distributing swords.

Accordingly, the police also managed to apprehend the owner of the passport.

Interrogations into the suspects led the police to search a house in Kaleliya owned by the sister of the driver of the three-wheeler, where a high-sensitivity device, to which 8 SIM cards can be inserted, was found.

Motorbike used in Batticaloa church attack found

Courtesy Adaderana

The police have discovered one of the motorbikes used in the attack at the Zion Church in Batticaloa in Thihariya.

Based on a tip-off received by the intelligence unit of Gampaha SSP Office, Nittambuwa Special Police Unit has carried out a special operation.

Accordingly, the officers have found the bike in a house in Thihariya, last evening (28).

The number plates of the bike were also found in pieces inside a freezer at the house, stated the Police.

CID & TID question 59 arrested over Easter attacks

Courtesy Adaderana

Forty-four suspects out of the total, who were arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday terror attacks, are currently being interrogated by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), says the Police Media Spokesperson SP Ruwan Gunasekara.

Speaking to media this evening (29), SP Gunasekara said, seven of the suspects held in custody of the CID are women.

Meanwhile, fifteen suspects including 2 women are being interrogated by the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID).

Seven out of these fifteen suspects were held by the Army on suspicion for having links to the Easter Sunday terror attacks, while the other 8 suspects were arrested for involving in terrorist activities.

Fathima Latifa, one of five suspects wanted by the police for the terror attacks on churches and hotels, was arrested by the CID in Mawanella area recently. She was identified as the wife of Mohamed Yuhaim Sadiq Haq, who was arrested by the CID yesterday (28).

The identity of the woman, who sustained injuries in the extremist militants’ explosion at their safe house at Sainthamaruthu in Kalmunai and was later identified as the wife of Zahran Hashim, has been confirmed by the police as Abdul Kader Fathima Kadiya. She was also included in the list of wanted suspects.

The investigating officers suspect that the other two wanted suspects, Pulasthini Rajendran alias Sara and Mohamed Kasim Mohamed Rilwan, to have died in the explosion at Sainthamaruthu. 

Residents in the area have rendered massive support to the security personnel and the investigators to uncover more information concerning the suspects, the Police Media Spokesperson further said.

Suspected NTJ intelligence member detained for 72 hours

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

A suspected member of the proscribed National Tawheed Jamaat (NTJ) movement was detained by Keselwatta Police in Colombo for 72 hours for further questioning in a bid to ascertain whether he has any link with the banned outfit.

On information provided by the public, the Western Province Intelligence Division of the police had arrested the suspect, Mohamed Farook Mohamed Fawaz, at Keselwatta.

Following the arrest, the police had recovered some literature and visuals of the vehicles alleged to have been used in the Easter Sunday mission.

The police told Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne that the suspect was an expert in handling electronic devices and that he could have been used by the terrorist movement when making explosive devices.

When questioned by the magistrate, the suspect said he was a resident of Keselwatta for the past nine years.(T. Farook Thajudeen)

An accomplice of Zahran arrested in Medawachchiya

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

An accomplice of National Thowheed Jamath’s leader Zahran Hashim was arrested at Rambewa in Medawachchiya on Sunday, police said.

Identified as Abdul Latif Mohamed Sathy, the 46-year-old electrician had allegedly been involved in the affairs of the group from its inception in Kattankudy.

He was arrested by the STF of Mihintale on information received by a police officer.

The suspect is employed as an electrician of a Chinese company handling a construction project in Colombo.

It was revealed that he had returned to Rambewa to visit his wife and children following the suicide bomb attacks on Easter Sunday.

After interrogations, the suspect was to be produced before the Anuradhapura Magistrate. (Athula Bandara)

By Charles.S.Perera

USA and UK with their resolutions 30/1 and 40/1 presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva,  sponsored by their local pawn Mangala Samaraweera,  prepared Sri Lanka as a propitious ground for” their terrorists” to bomb Churches targeting  their religion and their tourists.

Hillary Clinton  the USA Secretary of State under President Obama said  that all terrorists cannot be put into the same basket, as only those  terrorists who attacked USA and European Countries were the true terrorists,  and the others like those in Sri Lanka were freedom fighters.

Hence the USA Ambassadors in Sri Lanka  from O’Blake onwards became close associates of the Sri Lanka terrorists and after their  elimination the USA, UK and others such as the EU,UN, etc. supported and acted along with those  sympathises who funded terrorism in Sri Lanka  the Tamils of the diaspora in USA and European countries, to communally divide Sri Lanka.

They urged the Sri Lanka Goveernment led by their lackies  Ranil Wickramasinghe and Mangala Samaraweera  to reconcile with the Tamils allowing them to set up a separate Tamil Province in the North and East, writing for that purpose a New Constitution.  That was the declared  demand of the USA and the West from the Government of Sri Lanka.

Today USA seems to be well establised in Sri Lanka having Sri Lanka  Government under Ranil Wickramasinghe  well under its  control making Sri Lanka  an American puppet state.

Sri Lanka, under Ranil Wickramasinghe  has become a logistic supply hub for a US Warship US Air Craft carrier USS John.C.Stennis stationed in the Indian ocean with Sri Lanka receiving supplies to be transferred unchecked by Sri Lanka custom to  the warship which is a PLA Presence in the Indian Ocean to counter the influence of China in Sri Lanka.

(see below for details of this warship and its potential  danger to Sri Lanka one could imagine)

Sri Lanka has submitted to an American demand to allow the American Army to transport any material of any size and weight through the Bandaranaike International Airport and allow temporary storage of such material which  are interdicted  by the US Military for a Sri Lanka Custom check.

With these developments and an ISIS terrorists attack never imagined could happen in Sri Lanka, it should be investigated  whether,   the presence of a US Warship stationed in  close vicinity and material being transferred to and from  the warship through BIA in Colombo, has any connected to the terrorist strike on the Easter Sunday.

Was it a coincidence or is there an unexplained and unseen connection to the US Presence in the Indian Ocean and an International terrorists attack in Sri Lanka ?

It should also be noted that the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Alaina Teplitz had been very active since the terrorist attack and  overzealously  initiated actions that Sri Lanka does not want,  such  as the presence of FBI and their assistance in  the  investigations into the terrorist attacks by the Security Forces of Sri Lanka.

This is strange as no FBI personnel had been present in the Island through out the the 30 years of terrorism in Sri Lanka. Why now ? Why is USA so intent in having their FBI investigators present in the country now ? Has Amerika any thing to hide, and the FBI is working to cover up any thing that would point the finger in the direction of state terrorism coming from America ? The FBI did not come to France to investigate terrorist attacks in France. Why in Sri Lanka ?

All these makes one wonder whether the terrorist attack on the Easter Sunday was indeed  ISIS initiated or was there other unseen hands behind those attacks ?

If it was the ISIS what did the attackers expect from this suicide bombs other than a bloody carnage or a  mere passport to heaven to sit by the side of their God as a divine reward for massacre of unbelievers ? 

But on the other hand USA and the West have much to gain by such attacks that would destabilise Sri Lanka.  A politically strategic island, with a Chinese influence which America would wrench away from Chinese influence to make the Island a puppet state taking orders from the American  Embassy and the American political  hierarchy.

The suicide bombers according to reports are normal educated people, without a troubled psychological past, or having any serious political  involvements or financial difficulties. It is best to investigate who had been their friends, relatives, teachers and religious contacts. Because unless they were suffering from collective psychological problems, they had been brainwashed by  clever manipulators of the minds of their followers.

With the change of  President Mahinda Rajapakse’s  government in January, 2015, Sri Lanka became opened to all types of  undesirable elements to hold high office ,  such as a citizen of Singapore to become the Governor of the  Central Bank of Sri Lanka who under the protection of the country’s Prime Minister  wiped out the finances of the country and escaped safely without having to answer anyone for the crime he committed. But those highly placed political leader and his Ministers  who aided and abetted him in the crime have not been arrested or even taken to the CID for questioning..

The Yahapalanaya and the present UNP Government from the beginning on the 9^th January,2019 did nothing but ruined the country, until it became the centre of International terrorism and soon  would perhaps  be a victim of crossfire between  heavy fighting between America and China with America setting up an army base in the Indian Ocean with a warship ready to carry out even a nuclear war stationed not far away from Sri Lanka with Sri Lanka acting as its logistic supply hub.

All these happened to a Sri Lanka which suffered under local terrorism for 30years and was rescued  just in time by a visionary leader Mahinda Rajapakse  who gave political leadersip to eliminate terrorism under a military operation organised  by the Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse carried out with a united Armed Forces with the Army lead by  its Commander Sarath Fonseka, Navy lead by its Commander  Wasantha Karannagoda,   Air Force lead by its Commander  Roshan Gunatilleke and Civil Defence Forces led by Sarath Weerasekara.  They all contributed for the victory over terrorism.

Mahinda Rajapakse won the war against terrorism and developed the country  remarkably because he faught a war against terrorism, and was determined to develop the country and unite the Communities which he started by stating that, …  hereafter there are no minorities but the good and the bad citizens”. He gave leadersip to a, government to develop and unite the country and he had no vengeance to take against any one, he raised no voice of anger or hatred even to his enemies.

The Yahapaalnaya was from the beginning a government to make the people forget the previous regime of Mahinda Rajapakse. It was a government led by Maithreepala Sirisena to take revenge from the previous President Mahinda Rajapakse. In his rage against Rajapakse he  was blind to the mismanagement of the country by Ranil Wickramasinghe and his UNP click.  The President Sirisena did not see the Bank robbery, he did not see Mangala Samaraweera running his own government slavishly abiding to the wishes of the USA and the west, and even sponsoring a resolution against Sri Lanka Armed Forces.

Ranil Wickramasinghe the Prime Minister was gradually leaving behind  the President and taking over for himself the powers of the President to decide on matters relating to the country. He agreed to sell even the Hambantota Harbour to the Chinese and sign a Trade  agreement of 1000 pages with Singapore without even consulting the Parliament. 

The President Sirisena was slowly and surely loosing his authority. The development, peace and security of the country suffered while the Yahapalana Government was getting involved in taking revenge from the former   President Mahinda Rajapakse his Ministers and every one that supported him.

The country was being mismanaged , Communities were disunited one looking at the other with suspicion, there was a constant demand  for a reconciliation with the Tamils. Every thing was being done with the aim of giving more political power to the Tamils even by proposing to write a new Constitution giving more political; power to the Provinces which was to be exclusively forTamils. The Tamil politicians were beginning to wield more power and one of them Sumandiran even  dictating terms to the Prime Minister.

It was then that the President Sirisena realised that he was being left behind and the Government of Ranil Wickramasinghe is becoming all powerful, to the detriment of the country,  the welfare of the people and the security of the country was being neglected. President Sirisena then tried to take over things into his own hand.

The coalition that formed the Yahapalanaya government collapsed. And with that there was  for him an opportunity to appoint a new government with his former rival Mahinda Rajapakse as Prime Minister. He also moved to dissolve the Parliament., which was contested by the disempowered Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe  and his supporters.

It was then that the President Sirisena realised that it was too late and that all institutions including the judiciary had been taken into the Prime Minter’s confidence.   The judiciary which he thought was independent failed to render  independent and fair justice when the President asked for judicial interpretation of the Constitution.

The Supreme Court gave a ruling interpreting the Constitution in favour of the Prime Minister against the dissolution of Parliament stating that  the President has no right to dissolve the Parliament before four and a half years in terms of the Article 70 of the constitution ,when there was the Article 33 of the Constitution which definitely gave the President the right to dissolve the Parliament when there was a political crisis that needed the dissolution of the Parliament as a solution.

Thereafter there was a conflict between the President and the Prime Miniter with the Ministers of Ranil Wickramasinghe’s Cabinet like Mangala Saaraweera, Rajitha Senarathne, Malik Samarawickrama  acting on their own creating a disunited government. There was no ruling authority. The Inspector General of Police and the Minister of Defence were not taking their responsibilities seriously. Sri Lanka is without a ruler today.  This prepared the ground for whoever was planning to destabilise and breakup the county to create  utter political chaos.

This situation would have been avoided if the Supreme Court had interpreted the Constitution correctly  by confirming the authority of the President to dissolve the Parliament under article 33 of the Constitution. Or if the Prime Minister had respected democracy of which he speaks often and resigned from his Office

There is also doubts about President Sirisena’s intentions of forming a united front along with  the joint opposition and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna,  against the UNF of the UNP and its partners. If President and the SLFP wanted such a unity one cannot understand why the President allowed Dayasiri Jayasekara the General Secretary to demanding the acceptance of  20 condition by the Joint Opposition  as a prerequisite for unity and running away from Parliament  without voting against the UNP Budget, along with the Parliamentarians of the Joint Opposition..

Apparently President Sirisena’s silence on the issue makes his intention to unite with the joint Opposition doubtful. This also could be sited as a reason for foreign interventions in Sri Lanka and the paving of the way for international terrorists to create mayhem in a country which had been peaceful for nearly ten years.  If Dayasiri Jayasekara continues to bargain for unity with the Joint Opposition by insisting on its accepting  his conditions its better not join with the SLFP for the next Presidential and General elections, and that the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna contests the elections  alone as a Political force without joining with the SLFP.

Such a situation is sad as it would weaken the Presidents position today as he has only Dayasiri Jayasekara and SLFP to stand with when there is already a serious political crisis in Sri Lanka.

If Dayasiri Jayasekara is insistant for a conditional unity , and if the President Sirisena is genuinely interested in settling the present unsettled political situation in Sri Lanka, the President should change the General Secretary of the SLFP and settle for an unconditional Unity with the SLPP.

                                                          ************

The following  is about the US warship USS John C.Stennis an American Military Presence in the Indian Ocean using Bandaranayake International Airport as a logistic supply hub.  The US Warship is  by itself a complete American Military Camp ready for any massive war with its foreign enemies.  It is another great danger into which Ranil Wickramasinghe has  plunged Sri Lanka. Fear is USA being  a country not sympathetic towards developing countries it would not hesitate even to  destroy our country without a second though if its in the interest of America. We have Libya, Iraq as  examples of its vicious intentions and itsinhuman State terrorism.

The mission of John C. Stennis and her air wing (CVW-9) is to conduct sustained combat air operations while forward-deployed. The embarked air wing consists of eight to nine squadrons. Attached aircraft are Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet, EA-18G Growler, MH-60R, MH-60S, and E-2C Hawkeye.

The air wing can engage enemy aircraft, submarines, and land targets, or lay mines hundreds of miles from the ship. John C. Stennis’s aircraft are used to conduct strikes, support land battles, protect the battle group or other friendly shipping, and implement a sea or air blockade. The air wing provides a visible presence to demonstrate American power and resolve in a crisis. The ship normally operates as the centerpiece of a carrier battle group commanded by a flag officer embarked upon John C. Stennis and consisting of four to six other ships.

John C. Stennis’s two nuclear reactors give her virtually unlimited range and endurance and a top speed in excess of 30 knots (56 km/h, 34.5 mph). The ship’s four catapults and four arresting gear engines enable her to launch and recover aircraft rapidly and simultaneously. The ship carries approximately 3 million US gallons (11,000 m3) of fuel for her aircraft and escorts, and enough weapons and stores for extended operations without replenishment. John C. Stennis also has extensive repair capabilities, including a fully equipped Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department, a micro-miniature electronics repair shop, and numerous ship repair shops.

For defense, in addition to her air wing and accompanying vessels, John C. Stennis has NATO RIM-7 Sea Sparrow and Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) surface-to-air missile systems, the Phalanx Close-in Weapons System for cruise missile defense, and the AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare System.

KAMALIKA PIERIS

Revised 3.5.19, 12.5.19

On Easter Sunday, April 21 2019 there were consecutive bomb blasts in two Roman Catholic churches, one Evangelist church, and three five star hotels. The churches were St. Anthony’s, Kochchikade, Colombo, St Sebastian’s,   Katuwapitiya, Negombo and Zion Church, Batticaloa. The blasts took place around 8.45 am. The first blast was reported at St Anthony’s, followed by a second at St Sebastian’s. The roof of St Anthony’s had been blown almost entirely off. At St Sebastian’s, buildings in the area shook with the blast. 

There was a third Catholic Church on the list, St. Mary’s, Batticaloa.  However, a priest had seen the suicide bomber lurking around the St Mary’s complex the previous day. The Easter service was advanced to 7 am instead of 7.30 and by the time the suicide bomber arrived, the mass had ended and the congregation had left. When the bomber found that most of the congregation had left, he had made his way to the evangelist Zion Church, about 50 meters down the road.

An alert churchgoer, seeing the bomber’s back pack had detained him. The bomber claimed his backpack held a video camera and he had come to film worshippers. It was not a convincing explanation. He was asked to leave. Barred from entering the church, the bomber detonated the bomb outside. Catholic and Protestant  churches cut short their Easter services and sent the congregation home, when the news of the bomb blasts reached them.

It later emerged  later that a fourth church had been targeted, St. Theresa Church, Kilinochchi.  Parish priest of St. Theresa Rev Father A.J Jesudasan said that a person, arrested in connection with the bomb attacks, had revealed the decision to attack St Theresa Church. It was also felt that the real target at Negombo would have been St Mary’s Negombo, it was  the biggest church there.

Bombs also went off at three hotels In Colombo, Kingsbury, Shangri La and Cinnamon Grand, The blasts took place in the restaurants that were serving Easter Sunday breakfast. Cinnamon Grand was hit sometime after   8.30. Kingsbury and Shangri-La were hit at   9 am approximately. The blast had been felt on the 17^th floor at Shangri La. The bombers had checked into the hotels the night before.

A fourth hotel, Taj Samudra was also on the list, but the suicide bomber failed to carry out his task. His handler, not wanting to waste the bomb, had thereafter instructed him to go to Dehiwala and explode the bomb at St Mary’s Dehiwela, but security was too tight there.

There were seven suicide bombers.  All   were Sri Lankan citizens  and all were Muslim. They operated singly, except for Shangri-La where there were two. The extensive damage caused to the buildings indicated that military-grade high explosives were used. The explosive used, triacetone triperoxide dubbed ‘Mother of Satan’ was made in a copper factory in Wellampitiya owned by Inshaf Ahamad, who died bombing Cinnamon Grand. The death toll was 290 with 500 injured.

The horrified public, glued to the television, nevertheless found the whole thing somewhat staged. There was visible uniformity, right down to the identical jeans, baseball cap, the backpack and even the way of walking. At Katuwapitiya the bomber stayed well within the range of the CCTV cameras.  He pats a child on his way into the church. How easily, casually and confidently, as shown on CCTV, the suicide bombers who blasted the church in Negombo and the two hotels walked with explosives in backpacks”, commented Cassandra.

Experts have flatly dismissed the notion that this was a home grown attack. The first efforts of small, homegrown extremist groups are usually marked by failure. Some of the bombs fail to detonate entirely. Others explode early or late, and still others cause smaller blasts than their builders intended. But in this case, all seven bombs had detonated accurately.  The attackers were unusually successful, especially for a group with no track record of large-scale assaults. This shows that the group has received support from a global terror network, experts   said.

This was a very well coordinated sophisticated attack said experts. It was meticulously planned and executed within just 20 minutes. There would have been months of planning, possibly years, with foreign agents arriving in Sri Lanka to advice on the execution.

 Yahapalana has pinned the blame for the attack on   a radical Islamist group called the National Thowheed Jamath (NTJ). Until now, National Thowheed Jama’ath was known mainly  for vandalizing Buddhist statues in Mawanella in December 2018. The NTJ was formed in Kattankudy, in 2014. It is a splinter group of the hard-line Islamist group, the Sri Lanka Thowheed Jamath (SLTJ).  Its founder Zahran Hashim is believed to have been the suicide bomber who targeted Shangri-La Hotel.

NTJ is a tiny organization with few hundred followers, said analysts. it consists almost entirely of young people, especially recent graduates of Islamic schools. The group   has no hierarchy or organizational structure and no older leaders. 

Terrorism experts are definite that NTJ does not have the capability to plan, train and execute the Easter Sunday attacks. Such coordinated suicide attacks,   at several places, at the same time with such powerful explosives were beyond them.  Procuring explosives, getting  them into the country, assembling them, training persons  to handle such explosives, planning the logistics and execution  of the task are beyond the capability of this tiny outfit, they said.

Such an extensively planned and coordinated attack would almost certainly have required considerable financing as well as expertise from an experienced group overseas. The brilliant execution of these bomb blasts clearly indicated a foreign hand. There is an international force behind this, experts said. A foreign entity, most likely a foreign state or state intelligence agency was behind the attacks. The locals are merely pawns.

Given the level of sophistication, this was probably the work of al-Qaeda or Islamic State, announced analysts.  Sure enough, two days later, ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) claimed responsibility for the killings but without providing any evidence. ISIS only released a photograph which claimed to show the seven suicide bombers.  Expect for Zaharan Hashim, the faces of the others are completely covered. The photo generated no interest, and the ISIS argument was immediately dismissed.  ISIS only carries out attacks against countries that are fighting Muslims. That is not the case in Sri Lanka, said  the public.

Analysts think otherwise .The sophistication of the synchronized blasts in Sri Lanka, are indicative of a much more sinister design by the ISIS. The extent of planning and calculation that went into planting the right amount of explosives so as to inflict the kind of damage that was done, plus the level of sophistication in the use of detonators and fuses, as well as the extent of radicalization, should clear all doubts over whether or not the Islamic State has spread its wings to South Asia.

The group has long been specifically looking at recruiting young engineers, computer professionals and other qualified individuals so as not to go wrong in either planning or execution of attacks. The group has done away with any form of satellite communication to avoid being tracked. What is now a cause for concern is the pattern of lethal, coordinated explosive vector attacks, which can’t be traced.

Yahapalana government  however, offered three separate causes for the attacks. JVP said the bomb attacks were to create a Muslim state in Sri Lanka. State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene said that ‘preliminary investigations have revealed that what happened in Sri Lanka was in retaliation for the attack against Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand. That cannot be, replied critics. These bombings would have been planned months or years ahead.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe said the attacks were a part of global terrorism. Global terrorism had now come to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka too is now in the global terrorist incidents map thanks to those who unleashed terror on Easter Sunday, he said in Parliament.

But the public do not think it is ISIS, Christchurch or global terrorism. They think it is the CIA, the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States of America. The possibility of CIA is hinted at by the analysts. They said,” A foreign entity, most likely a foreign state or state intelligence agency was behind the attacks.”

CIA knows about bombs. In 1999 CIA admitted to bombing the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. They said it was an accident. They were going to bomb elsewhere. It is thought that CIA was responsible for the 2002 Bali bombings and the 2009 bomb blasts at Ritz-Carlton and the Marriott hotels In Jakarta in 2009. It is also important to note that ISIS, which says it is responsible for the bomb blasts, was created by United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, so was al Qaeda. So there is a USA link there too.

Many said that the moment they heard of the bomb blasts, the first thing that came to mind was this is CIA”. The name was mentioned on television news on the 21^st itself. (Derana 6.55 news. 21.4.19). This is not the first time that CIA has been suspected in Sri Lanka., L.H.Mettananda, who had access to political information,   had said in a private conversation that SWRD Bandaranaike’s assassination in the 1960s was done by the CIA. In the 1970s The JVP was considered a CIA organization.

The public are angry about the bomb blasts. This has put the USA temporarily on the defensive in Sri Lanka. The US Navy and the Sri Lanka Navy to called off their CARAT military exercise at Hambantota port. After the NTJ attacks, foreign governments were certain to review joint exercises conducted in Sri Lanka territory.

The US ambassador has had to face interviews and questions. She is the only ambassador to be interviewed and questioned. The US ambassador, questioned by Amanpour, denied the United States had prior knowledge of the Easter Sunday attacks.”We had no prior knowledge of these attacks,” US ambassador Alaina Teplitz told the CNN in an interview.

US ambassador said expert teams from the FBI and the US Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) are helping with the bomb investigations. This was at the request of the Sri Lankan government. These teams are working side by side with Sri Lankan officials. This cooperation is short-term, temporary, and specific to the recent attacks and bringing the perpetrators to justice, said the US embassy in a statement.

However, USA is a prominent force in Sri Lanka today. The Yahapalana government is a creation of the USA.  At the Parliamentary debate on the bomb blasts, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe emphasized that US President, Donald Trump had phoned and offered assistance. Mike Pompeo US Secretary of state had also phoned. The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) of the US Government has given  Yahapalana government a grant of USD 480 million for land related projects.  (Continued)

Prof. Hudson McLean

The Opposition led by HE Mahinda Rajapaksa should bring a Motion of No Confidence in the Government.

Hopefully, even the Members of the Government might join the Opposition to remove the present Government.

It will be interesting to see how may would support the Maggots.

This is a Life or Death Motion for the entire population.

PS: Loved the well written article by Shenali Waduge

Easter Sunday attack in Sri Lanka by ISIS & who else?
By shenali Waduge

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The Independent Interactive Voice of Sri Lanka on the Internet.

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UNITED AUSTRALIANS OF SRI LANKAN ORGANISATIONS VICTORIA 3175, AUSTRALIA,

The Society for Peace Unity and Human Rights for Sri Lanka (SPUR) organisations based in Victoria, New South Wales Queensland and Western Australia (WASPUR) as well as the Global Sri Lanka Forum (GSLF) Australia extend their profound sympathies to the families who lost their loved ones and those who sustained serious injuries due to the barbaric terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka on the Easter Day of 2019.

In particular, we offer our heartfelt condolences to our Christian communities whose lives have been cruelly destroyed on their most sacred day, as well as to the overseas visitors who sustained irreparable damages to life and limb.  We also pay tribute to the members of the Sri Lanka Police who paid the ultimate price in their attempt to safeguard the nation and its people.  Among those seriously impacted are members of the Australian-Sri Lankan community including members of our own organisations.

While unreservedly condemning the acts of terror perpetrated on innocent civilians including a large number of children, we must also point out that this damage could have been prevented had Sri Lanka not made itself a ‘soft-target’ due to a series of commissions and omissions made by its dysfunctional rulers.

These included the hounding of intelligence operatives and military officers due to the co-sponsoring of UNHRC resolutions 30/1 & 40/1 to appease foreign powers, the relaxation of on-ground security measures, lax immigration controls and the appointment of incompetent officials to senior positions in the Police and Defence Ministry. The loss of focus on National Security was compounded by arms of the administration being used for a witch hunt against political opponents.

It is apparent that there has been a total lack of preparedness for an attack by Islamic extremists despite warning from many quarters over several years right through to the last hours before the Easter Day bombings.  No action was taken after repeated exposures of extremist ideologies taking root in Sri Lanka that were issued by multiple sources including Muslim organisations.  Even the recent discovery of arms and explosives at Wanathawilluwa and the vandalising of Buddha Statues were glossed over, the likely reasons being the patronage of a few Muslim politicians and the desire to appease foreign powers and their NGO cronies in the name of reconciliation.

In contrast, the Sri Lankan armed forces and police should be praised for acting professionally and decisively in countering the terrorist threat once the shackles placed on them by the political leadership were removed during the past few days.

Even at this late hour, our organisations urge the Government of Sri Lanka to act on the following priorities.

• Taking all legal steps to bring to justice those who planned, encouraged and executed these attacks, as well as the officials and politicians whose criminal negligence prevented them from being nipped in the bud.
• Appointing patriotic and competent officials to key positions in the armed services, police and the defence ministry and rebuilding a strong and cohesive intelligence service.
• Reinstating all officers of the intelligence services who are remanded or on bail without being charged
• To provide immediate assistance to rebuild the damaged property including the churches and houses and to extend all assistance to the civilians affected.
• Tightening immigration controls to prevent anti-national or radical elements entering the country and also deporting non-nationals who are illegally present.
• Banning foreign funded religious schools that preach a violent ideology.
• Implementing a common policy on the teaching of Sri Lankan history and national languages at all schools in the country.
• Banning dresses with full-face covering.
• Preventing or removing illegal settlements on state land sponsored by politicians.
• Protecting historical sites particularly in the North and East of the country.
• To appoint a high powered commission to investigate the issue of radicalization of the segments of the Muslim population and to take effective action within a short period.
• Ensuring that foreign powers do no use the current instability to infiltrate Sri Lanka for their own geopolitical objectives.  This includes inter-country agreements that compromise the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka, thereby turning it into a violent international battleground.

In conclusion we appeal to all Sri Lankans and their well-wishers to unite in the face of this latest adversity and support those who are in need.  The terror unleashed on Easter Day is not merely an attack by one community or religion on another but a coordinated effort to socially and economically cripple the entire nation.

Sri Lanka was able to overcome a three-decade long campaign of terror and enjoy 10 years of peace and stability due to the vigilance and heroism of its security forces, determined political leadership and the resilience of her people.  Let us all stand strong and united on behalf of mother Lanka and her people once again.

Signed :

Dasarath Jayasuriya   (President – SPUR Victoria)

Nimal Liyanage           (President – SPUR New South Wales)

Priya Barnes               (President – Western Australian SPUR)

Anil Perera                  (President – SPUR Queensland)

Harsha Perera            (President – GSLF Australia)

Prof. Hudson McLean

Without using puns, Kalinga Seneviratne  has given a more practical and a realistic dimension to Easter Sunday Massacre in Sri Lanka.

It is obvious that this Merciless Criminal Act was perpetrated  in collusion with External Forces & Influence.

A group of home born Sri Lankan Muslim terrorists, some edúcated in the UK, could not have had the Planning Intellect & Capability without the tacit support of external forces, possibly ISIS – Al Qaeda and beyond.

Kalinga, you may have touched a very important salient point, to prevent Regime Change, by the Western Forces, by creating mayhem, leading to cancellation of Democratic Vote.

No one doubts that the Russians or the Chinese had any hand in this Vile Scheme.

The finger points to CIA of USA trying to meddle with national politics to keep the UNP Puppets in Power.

Divide & Rule. Create ethnic conflict between Christians & Muslims?

However, USA has lost in almost all their meddling in Asia and in the Middle East. The latest being with North Korea.

With the possibility of a joint exercise of cooperation of One Belt – On Road project, between China & Russia, the possible political control of Sri Lanka, is on the cards.

This is the New Silk Route, which will connect China with Asia-Europe-Africa and beyond.

USA should not under-estimate the Democratic senses of India or Sri Lanka.

The Easter Sunday Massacre might lead to more Dirt unearthed from the on-going investigations.

Latest threats from ISIS on creating terror in Europe may be a message to white-wash who was behind  the Terror in Sri Lanka.

Thank You Kalinga!

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Wimal Senanayake 

When the army was making advances against the terrorists the church was all against it. In fact its ally Jayalath Jayawardene went to the courts to curtail army’s advancement. Therefore it is ironical to hear now the Cardinal Rev. Malcolm Ranjith demanding the government to do all to improve the resources of the army. Terrorists are terrorists irrespective of their demands & all & sundry should support the army always to safeguard the country not only when their interests  are affected.

If a significant number of people die after consuming some food but most escape you still label that food as poisonous. Do you wait until all of those who consumed the meal die to declare that it is poisonous? On that same note if a significant number of people is persuaded to become terrorists and suicide bombers  after following a certain religion it should be banned irrespective of the majority remain normal.

PM Ranil is playing his game as normal by appointing committees & calling foreign help when confronted with problems putting the independence of the country at stake. Having FBI & American help encroaching into our country will be the beginning of a worse set of scenarios embroiling the country further in international politics. However PM Ranil is least concerned of it as his only goal is to cling onto power at any cost. The public is awaiting eagerly to hear the departure of these sleuths from our shores at the earliest.

Of course PM Ranil should have resigned immediately has he had some dignity at the first place.

Banning Burka & Madrassa schools should be top priority and a permanent step not just during the emergency which is unlikely to happen under this weak government in power. Ministers, MPs & Chandrika  are talking of these to ease the pain of the suffering public but they know these just are window dressings. All those culprits should be prosecuted under the law but how many will be released on the sly under orders from the top is worrying.

This is a country thrice blessed with the visit of Buddha. What we saw in the recent past was unending harassment and prosecution of Sangha by the government on flimsy grounds. No wonder today they have cause to weep. Isn’t it Ven Galaboda Gnanasara Thero who first brought the extremism of some Muslims into focus? He was hounded away on the pretext of maintaining national unity. The country is paying now for its sins.

Thripathi Sirisena & Thripathi Ranil with their frequent homages there have brought the country the curse it deserves in this way. What a let down to the majority Buddhists of the country after the huge publicity of the steps taken on Thripitakaya, the President seen on Thripathu Vandana, literally the next day. Mahinda too does this unBuddhist frequent homages there and how pleasing it is to note however not by Gotabaya. We earnestly plead Gotabaya not to fall into this disappointing ritual.

The suffering public has only one demand and that is going to the polls as early as possible to see the back of these jokers. The parliament should agree to vote with two thirds majority to go for elections to bring in a new government to power.

If there was a single pleasing news to the public amid this carnage it was the Reuters report that Gotabaya admitting that he is running for the Presidency!

By ; A.A.M.NIZAM – MATARA

His highness Cardinal Dr. Malcolm Ranjith who is very much saddened about the carnage that struck the Christian community on the Easter Sunday held a meeting with diplomats from Islamic countries resident in Colombo on Friday 26^th April and blamed the powerful western countries for implementing a vicious, abhorrent and inhuman programme to create divisions among communities for the sake of marketing their arms and ammunition.  H.H.Cardinal also stated that he has instructed all priests to refrain from holding Church Sermons until the situation returns to normal

Meanwhile peace and inter religious harmony loving patriotic Muslim organizations have held a meeting in Colombo on 27^th April and have issued a statement titled ‘We are ashamed at the barbarism perpetrated in the name of Islam – a religion of peace and tolerance’

The message (only an extract of the long message given below) states that the leaders and members of civil society, Islamic and Muslim Associations and Movements, are horrified by the events of Easter Sunday, which resulted in killings, destruction and attack on innocent lives and they express their deepest sympathies and sorrow and condemn in the strongest terms the incidents, which were against all human and Islamic norms and it is grounded in the Noble Laws of Islam, which forbid all forms of violence and aggression..The message states that their hearts are profoundly troubled as they contend with the aftermath of this horrific act of violence and terror. They also state that they

 are ashamed at the barbarism perpetrated in the name of Islam, which is a religion of peace and tolerance and they express unity with the victims’ relatives and have called upon the authorities to immediately apprehend the true perpetrators of these crimes, as well as those who aid and abet them through incitement, financing or other support and urge tat they must be brought to justice in a court of law and punished appropriately.

Representatives of All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama, National Shoora Council, Muslim Council of Sri Lanka, Memon Association of Sri Lanka, Dawoodi Bohra Community Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum, Sri Lanka Jama’athe Islami, Lanka Minaret, Quadiriyathun Nabaviyyah Thareeqah, Nabaviyyah Islamic Youth Organisation, Sri Lanka Muslim Womens’ Conference, Muslim Ladies Study Circle, Young Muslim Women’s League, and All Ceylon Union of Muslim Youth League Front have participated in this meeting.However it is shameful to find that none of dollar voracious political vultures who sustain by selling the Muslim community for their personal and political benefits has not attended this meeting.

Now let us focus attention on political aspects related to this abhorrent carnage which incidentally amounts the largest terrorist attack in this country.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe who was missing for two days following this attack, similar to his uncle JR who was missing for 5 days following UNP program of Black July in 1983 ,  has expressed regrets over the government’s failure to prevent the Easter Sunday a and said that as Prime Minister, he shares in the collective responsibility and express his  sincere regret to the people of the country for the Government’s lapse. He has said d that it is not enough to simply apologise and have to make sure these mistakes will never be repeated in the future and we must take measures to prevent such systemic failures, and commit ourselves to safeguard all human life.

In a tweet message he has said that everyone in the government takes collective responsibility for the failure to protect victims of tragic events. Despite CNN and a number of Indian news services reproof about the ring sent by the Deputy Inspector General of Police Priyalal Dissanayake on 4^th April, almost two weeks prior to the Easter attack he has denied receiving this warning.

Ranil Wickremasinghe is very much notorious among the people for his penchant qualities of denying facts, inventing illusory and imaginary stories and lies, distorting matters, making false promises, and for his untrustworthy qualities. People say that this denial is also one of his attempt to fool the people and evade responsibility.  

Critics question if that was so, how the Ministers and the government’s Christian MPs refrained from attending Mass on the Easter Sunday which is the 3^rd most important event in the Christian calendar.  They particularly ask about  foul mouthed Minister, John Ameratuga, the Minister of Christian Affairs, who is a staunch Catholic who frequently visits Bethlehem attend audience of His Eminence Pope at Vatican City.

Utterly disregarding and without any concern for the death of innocent people and those injured in the carnage he has proposed measures to open the doors of the country for foreign spies and allow them to gain access to strategic secrets of the country. He has said that this terror cannot be fought alone by us at a national level and the planning and training could be done in a foreign country.  It is shameless to find this Anglophile Suddha puppet making utterances belittling the talents, devotion and determination of our heroic war heroes.  Was he in a limbo when our Naval officers ed to international maritime territory near Indonesia and destroyed LTTE’s weapons storage vessels, when our Air Force personnel carried out precise bombing of Tamilselvan’s hideout and child soldier training camp Sen Cholai and when or intelligence operators went to Malaysia to apprehend KP and bring him back to Sri Lane. Canhe cite any example of such achievements by his Suddha forces. Only example that reminds us in the post World War II era is the Entebbe Airport raid by Israeli forces.

Another matter he has stated about is that our existing laws are insufficient to deal with the extraordinary situation we are faced with and we are to efficiently combat global terrorism, we have to enact laws that deal severely with academic institutions that impart extremist  views. If that is so why you are making all attempts to repeal the existing powerful PTA (Prevention of Terrorism Act) and attempting to introduce a toothless law called Counter Terrorism Act on the insistence of your Suddha uncles, the diaspora, terrorist TNA and the cesspool UNHRC?

If you are so hateful and antipathy to Sri Lanka why don’t you with your Butterfly acolytes and your childhood playmate that opld Hag anf go and settle down in your Sudda uncle’s laqnd allow we Sri Lankans to live peacefully managing our own affairs suitably?.

President Maithripala Sirisena has charged that the responsibility of the Easter Sunday carnage should be borne by all sections of the government that weakened the security forces and intelligence services by putting intelligence officers behind bars.

Addressing the media at the President’s House, he said that the Defence Secretary and the Inspector General of Police should accept the responsibility of dereliction of duty which led to the disaster that took place on Sunday.

He noted that the Human Rights ‘uncles’ (bappala) who were making a big noise could not be even found after the incident happened.

The President further said that the problems between him and the government aggravated about two years ago after he protested within and outside the government against the weakening of intelligence services and unnecessarily arresting security services personnel.

He said at that time the ‘Human Rights uncles’ (Manawa Himikan Bappala) were saying that the law should be applied to everyone in the country equally.

The President said that what he was against was not about applying the law equally but about weakening the intelligence services and security forces.

He noted that under these circumstances many intelligence officers and experts left the country during the past few years. He added some of them were put to Sri Lankan missions in foreign countries by him due to this harassment they had to undergo. The President said that the other sections of the government insisted that they could not continue to keep these officers in those posts.  

The President said that he has the fullest confidence that the law and order machinery has all the required capabilities to meet the challenge of terrorism and bring back peace and normalcy very soon since major search operation has been undertaken. Every household in the country will be checked and lists of permanent residents of every house will be established to ensure no unknown persons could live anywhere.  He pointed out that during the fight against LTTE terrorism, similar methods were adapted.

The President acknowledged that there was a serious lapse on the part of Defence Secretary and Inspector General of Police (IGP), who failed to inform him about the intelligence agency letter from a friendly foreign country sent on April 4, warning about a possible attack.

The letter warned of possible attacks on churches, places of public gatherings and VIPs.

The IGP has sent that letter to Staff DIG and it was sent from table to table and finally it was forwarded to DIG Dissanayake of VIP Security, who, in turn, forwarded it to officers in-charge of security of VIPs protection. I was not informed.

He said that both, Defence Secretary and IGP came to wish me on New Year Day (April 14) and they did not say a word about this warning letter. It was a serious lapse on their part and shirk of responsibility,” he said.

He said that the letter kept on going from one place to another with minutes being put and he was not informed about it. The President added that while in Singapore a friend who was with him had shown the letter that was circulating in social media.

The President said that he asked the Defence Secretary and the IGP to tender resignations immediately and they agreed to do so.

He added that an appropriate process will be implemented while completely reorganizing the security services including State Intelligence Service and Intelligence Units of the Police and Tri-forces, to prevent recurrence of these kinds of terrorist activities.  

Referring to the current operations, raids and arrests of suspects, he praised the law enforcement and intelligence services for their efficiency and dedication in responding to this situation. The government has already been able to crack down on many criminals, suspects and those responsible for the recent attacks and many arrests have taken place. Therefore, I truly believe that we can avoid a repetition of such gruesome acts of violence in the future,” he said.

I have already planned necessary actions to build an environment where the people of this country could live freely and without fear in the future,”

Answering a question about the safety of schools and places of worship, the President said that as the Government, it will create a background where the public servants, school children, entrepreneurs and the general public of the country could act liberally in a free and peaceful environment.

We had to declare an Emergency situation to suppress terrorists and ensure a peaceful environment in the country. What have been enacted by gazette are clauses pertaining to suppressing terrorism only. If these enactments were not made, the powers prevailed were not sufficient for Police to take proactive measures and the Army, Navy and Air Force could not take part actively in the operations,” he said.s.

The President said There is a nexus between international terrorism and international drug trade. Furthermore, I got staunch support for anti-drugs campaign from His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, who joined us at Anti-Drug Walks. Perhaps the terrorist hastened the attacks on churches for these reasons”.

Asked about proscribing the Islamic militant groups responsible for terror attacks, the President said that can be done under the emergency laws, but the ban would end, when the emergency is lifted.

I have asked to draft a new legislation for proscribing these organizations and we are studying such laws enacted in Singapore, Australia and other countries”.

The President recalled that when the LTTE terrorism broke out in early 80s, most Sinhala and Muslim people used to look at Tamils as if all of them were terrorists.

However, people quickly learned about the LTTE and the fact that not all Tamils were terrorists, and that laid the foundation for the nation to unite for peace.

I request from Sinhala and Tamil people not to look at our country’s Muslim community with suspicion, fear or distrust. You must keep in mind that not all Muslims are terrorists. It is only a very small minority who are linked to such a barbaric terrorist organization,” he said.

It is very important therefore, that peace and harmony among Sinhala, Muslim and Tamil communities prevail. It is important for us to foster trust among us.”

He emphasized the importance of everybody joining together despite differences for the task of protecting the national security, However the patriotic, civil. Professional and religious orgaorganizations and the general public faulted the President for failing todismiss the Ranil Wickremasinghe government at least on the 22^nd night itself and handover the country to a caretaker government comprising a panel of secvurity service and judicial officers yorun the country until the people a new government.

(To be copntinued)  .

Palitha Senanayake

‘Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity’- Martin Luther King

Mangala Samaraweera continues to better his record as the most treacherous person ever to assume a political office since independence in Sri Lanka.  Holding a press conference on Friday the 27^th April on the Easter attack, he maintained that he is concerned about the loss of revenue in tourism and the effect the attack may have on the future arrivals. Then he went on to say that, ‘However, as a result of this attack the Millennium Corporation in America has promised Sri Lanka US $ 500 million as aid for two development projects in the country”. Nothing about 250+ lives lost of innocent people in this country!

This ‘internationalized poodle’ co-sponsored the American resolution to take action on war crimes alleged to have been committed by the SL forces during the humanitarian operation that ended the 33-year instability in Sri Lanka and brought a ray of hope to the people.  Then he could not find anybody more appropriate than Ms Samantha Power, the former UN Representative for the US, who was instrumental in bringing those fabricated charges against the forces, to celebrate his 30 years in politics.  These actions imply that this ex-Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka is utterly ignorant of international affairs and also that his devotion to America has blinded his senses. Thus, let me educate this ‘American poodle’ about the background of the Easter Sunday attack and the origin of armed Muslim extremism.

Saudi Arabia is a country that has offered so many privileges to America because, it was American technology that brought them all that oil wealth and also the underpopulated feudal state depended on America for its defense. In early 1990’s some oil-producing countries ( Iraq, Libya and Venezuela) wanted to do away with the US$ as the medium of international currency for oil due to economic and political reasons and Saudi Arabia staunchly opposed this move resulting in the split of OPEC. The US $ in oil exports is so crucial for the US economy as the US $ was the biggest item of exports US had (next to arms) at the time. Thus, you could see today that none of those leaders ( Saddam, Gaddafi and Chavez)who wanted to replace the US $ in oil transactions do not exist today as they have been eliminated by the US on some guise or the other. Henceforth Saudi Arabia continued to be the strongest US ally in world affairs ( next to Israel) and then in keeping with their religious fanatism started to export Wahhabism ( a sect of Sunni Muslim) to the rest of the world. It exploited the issues US had with Iran (the primary Shia Muslim country in the world) and directly and indirectly manipulated US to attack all Shia countries.

Saddam Hussien was a critique of Saudi Arabia and US for lording over the world oil economy and advocated independence from US to obtain better terms for their oil. However, US used the Kuwait issue to invade Iraq to get rid of Saddam Husein and finally ended up killing more than a million Iraqis. US aided and abetted all the extremist elements within the country, especially religious extremist who were not happy with Saddam’s secular ways. As a result religious extremism, spearheaded by a group called ISI (Islamic State for Iraq) raised its head. Every Muslim in this world is under the belief that this whole world would one day become an Islamic State and many thought that this was the beginning of that eventuality and therefore started supporting it in various ways. Iraq, though a complex religious and ethnic mix, survived for centuries due to a strong center but today Iraq is very much a fragmented country unable to be cohesive as a singular nation.

Syria too is a Shia majority country with a Shia sect called ‘Alaywiyyah’ holding sway in its governance.  The Sunni Muslim rulers of Saudi Arabia wanted Azzad of Syria out of power and so was Israel. US sent its troops in the guise of an ‘Arab Spring’ to ‘democratize’ Syria and ended up bring about a colossal humanitarian crisis where thousands of Syrian got killed and millions displaced.  Abubakar, the ISI leader, extended his activities to the neighboring Syria with the help of US forces an renamed his organization as ISIS ( Islamic State for Iraq and Syria).  The war went on for years with the US supporting the radicals against Azaad and in the process the radical extremism took root in the region. Inspired by all this, the ISIS started to show their real colors by recruiting world-wide and by launching a campaign to eliminate all non-Muslims in those countries. Thus, America helped the rise of extremism in Iraq and Syria. The fact is that both these states had a sizeable Christian and Yazdi populations for centuries but after these exercises there were no Christians and Yazidis left in those countries; thanks to US intervention.

It is against this reality that Mangala is bragging about the entry of US into Sri Lanka’s problems. At present times in Sri Lanka, it is a folly to be wise because ignorance is bliss at the highest level of country’s governance.    

Courtesy The Island

Following last Friday’s gun battle between extremists and the security forces in the East, troops found the wife and the daughter of Zahran Hashim, the mastermind of the Easter Sunday carnage. Police headquarters spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekera yesterday said that they had been in the house where at least a suicide cadre triggered an explosion causing number of deaths. Yesterday, security forces found 15 bodies in the compound.

SP Gunasekera said that interrogation of Hashim’s driver had led to the recovery of weapons belonging to two police officers killed in the East last year.

The Eastern Province killings were earlier blamed on former members of the LTTE. The police spokesman said that Hashim’s driver had revealed how the weapons had been taken from the police officers.

Ada Derana News

Courtesy Adaderana

Two main suspects wanted in connection with the Easter Day attack have been arrested at Nawalapitya area, stated the Police.

The suspects have been identified as Mohamed Saadik Abdul Haq and Mohamed Saahid Abdul Haq, according to the Police.

The Special Task Force (STF) and Sri Lanka Army officials made the arrest on a mission based on a tip-off received by the Nawalapitiya Police that the suspects are hiding in a shoe shop belonging to a relative in Gampola area.

Police have also arrested the driver of the van they arrived at Gampola in, the house owner where the van was hidden and the owner of the relevant shoe shop in connection with the incident.

The two arrestees have been handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for further investigations.

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, April 27 (Reuters): The wife and daughter of Mohamad Zahran Hashim, the suicide bomber cum mastermind of the serial bombings in Colombo and two other cities on April 21, were injured in the explosion in the Islamic State safe house at Sainthamarudu in Eastern Sri Lanka on Friday night.

The shootout at a safe house erupted as police hunted for people linked to Mohamed Zahran Hashim who has been named as the ringleader of the Easter Sunday bombings.

Yes, the wife and daughter were injured in the attack,” said Mohamed Hashim Mathaniya , sister of Zahran. I was asked to come to identify them but I am not sure I can go, ” she told Reuters from the town of Kattankudy in the east.

Police officials said the injured were believed to be Zahran’s relatives.

At least 15 people including six children were killed in the gun battle, a military spokesman said earlier.The shootout at a safe house erupted on Friday in Sainthamaruthu in Ampara district on the east coast as police hunted for people linked to Mohamed Hashim Mohamed Zahran, who has been named as the ringleader of the Easter Sunday bombings.

Yes, the wife and daughter were injured in the attack,” said Mohamed Hashim Mathaniya , sister of Zahran. I was asked to come to identify them but I am not sure I can go, ” she told Reuters from the town of Kattankudy in the east.

Police officials said the injured were believed to be Zahran’s relatives.

At least 15 people including six children were killed in the gun battle, a military spokesman said earlier.

By P.K.Balachandran/newsin.asia

Colombo, April 25: Prof. Rohan Gunaratna, a leading Sri Lankan expert on terrorism, including West Asian terrorism, says that it is misleading to say that the National Tawheed Jamaat (NTJ) carried out the multiple suicide attacks on targets in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday. The truth is that they were Sri Lankans affiliated to the Islamic State (IS).

Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne was wrong when he told the media that it was the NTJ which had carried out the blasts. The blasts were the handiwork of the Islamic State (IS) with the involvement of its Sri Lankan affiliates,” Dr.Gunaratna, who is an expert on the Al Qaida told this correspondent from Singapore.

Dr.Gunaratna is Professor of Security Studies at the S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies. He was the first to say publicly, that the Easter Sunday blasts were the handiwork of the Islamic State with the help of its local branch”. He is the author of Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror” (Colombia University Press) and is an expert on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) also.

Dr.Gunaratna said that the main suspect, Moulvi Mohammad Zahran, had split from the NTJ and was on his own. And somewhere along the way he linked up with the Islamic State (IS).

According to Hilmy Ahamad of the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka (MCSL), Zahran himself was not sophisticated enough to link up with an international organization like the IS though he had a good command of Arabic. Ahamad believes that some highly educated and similarly motivated Sri Lankans would have brought about the link up with IS.

And sure enough, at least some of the nine suicide bombers involved is Sunday’s blasts were highly educated and wealthy persons with foreign degrees.

Repeated Splits in Tawheed movement

Dr.Gunaratna said that the Tawheed Jamaat movement in Sri Lanka had gone through many splits and that Zahran’s splitting from the NTJ was the latest.

The splits had been taking place over ideology with increasing radicalization being the order of the day since IS changed its name from ISIS to IS on June 29, 2014. It had been driven out of its habitat Iraq and Syria and had become global in its organization and recruitment.

The more radical group would split and form an independent entity, Dr.Gunaratna said.

The inspiration for the Tahweed movement had come from Tamil Nadu in India, where the Tamil Nadu Tawheed Jamaat was well established under the leadership of P.Jainulabdeen alias PJ.

PJ had had difficulty in coming to Sri Lanka to preach as he faced opposition from the Sri Lanka Jamiuathul Ulema which was Sufi in its ideology. Following a violent incident, PJ was barred from entering Sri Lanka twice.

Zahran, who was with the Sri Lanka Tawheed Jamaat (SLTJ), split along with SLTJ Secretary Abdul Razick. They left SLTJ on the grounds that it was not radical enough. After this, Zahran went into hiding and perhaps formed the NTJ. He split with Razick too.

Zahran’s name and that of his organization came to the public domain after a long time only with the blasts on April 21,” MCSL leader Hilmy Ahamad said.

According to Dr.Gunaratna, the NTJ mentioned by the government as the perpetrator is in fact the IS.

On the question if Zahran was one of the suicide bombers as suspected by the government, Dr.Gunaratna said that all he can say with certainty is that Zahran is a very creative man”.

Perhaps this is a hint that Zahran is not among the dead bombers but is alive and kicking somewhere. The Lankan government too is not sure if he is dead or alive or whether he was himself a suicide bomber or not.

State Minister of Defense Ruwan Wijewardene told foreign correspondents on Wednesday that out of the nine suicide bombers the body of one is yet to be identified.

Minister Wijewardene said that two groups were involved in the blasts – one is the NTJ and the other he declined to identify. The Minister further said that the unidentified group was the more radical and that its leader was the leader of the joint operation.

But according to Dr.Gunaratne , only one group was responsible and that was the IS operating through its local partners.

Government however says that the exact nature of the foreign involvement is yet to be fathomed. Police are investigating if there had been any foreign financial, logistical and technical help given to the bombers . Going by Minister Wijewardene’s statement, the current official thinking is that the IS’s role has principally been ’motivational”.

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

By P.K.Balachandran

Colombo, April 28 (newsin.asia): It was the Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem (JMI), which was the actual perpetrator of the Easter Sunday carnage in Colombo and two other Lankan towns, Dr.Rohan Gunaratna, an expert on Islamic terrorism, says.

The Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem and the National Tawheed Jamaat are to be banned, and steps are being taken to give effect to this, the Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena had said in a press release on Saturday.

However, Dr.Gunaratana, who is a co-author of The Three Pillars of Radicalization” (Oxford University Press 2019), feels that it was the Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem which had committed the crime.

Mohammad Cassim Mohammad Zahran or Zahran, the leader of the pack of nine suicide bombers, had quarrelled and left the National Tawheed Jamaat (NTJ) and founded the Jamatheir Millathu Ibraheem, because the NTJ was lagging behind in radicalism.

The Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem was the more radical of the two and was the local representative of the Islamic State (IS),” Dr.Gunaratna said.

Even before President Sirisena mentioned JMI in his communiqué relating to a proposed ban on it, Sri Lankan officials had been mentioning JMI, but without expanding the acronym. This left many to imagine that it was the Jamaat ul Mujahideen India (JMI), well known in India as an affiliate of IS.

The Sri Lankan State Minister of Defense, Ruwan Wijewardene, had mentioned in his press conference that two groups were involved in the blasts. But he named only one, the National Tawheed Jamaat .

However, without naming the second group, he said that the second group was the more radical of the two and that Zahran was the leader of the more radical group.

According to Dr.Gunaratna also, the more radical group is the Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem founded by Zahran, who was also the most radical of Sri Lankan Islamic radicals.

In Dr. Gunaratna’s view, the National Tawheed Jamaat (NTJ) with which Zahran is generally associated, was not involved in the blasts as Zahran had fought with it and left it to form another group, the JMI.

However, Dr.Gunaratna felt, that whatever that remains of the NTJ has to be banned and its affiliates closely watched because the organization could still be involved in the radicalization of SriLankan Muslim youth.

After Zahran left the NTJ, he got closer to IS, and founded JMI with the term Fi-Saylani added to it to make it the Saylan or Sri Lanka branch of the IS,” the expert said.

Impact of Nilam Muhsin’s Death

According to Dr.Gunaratna, JMI was actually created after the death of a 37 year-old Sri Lankan Muslim man called Nilam Muhsin” in Syria in July 2015 while he was fighting with the IS there.

A karate master from Galewela in Sri Lanka’s Kandy district, Sarfaz Nilam Muhsin, known in the Islamic State as Abu Shuraih Sailani, was killed in Syria in July 2015 in a US air strike. He was said to be the first Sri Lankan member of the ISIS.

After completing his GCE Ordinary Level (Class 10), Nilam Muhsin alias Abu Shuraih Sailani, pursued Islamic studies with great zeal mastering Hadith science. He studied contemporary Fiqh (The theory or philosophy of Islamic law, based on the teachings of the Koran and the traditions of the Prophet). He did an LLB in Shariah Law at the International Islamic University in Pakistan.

Nilam’s laying down his life for the sake of God, became a model for Zahran and some radicalized educated and well-heeled Muslims in Sri Lanka. That he was from a rich family and had studied in the elite Trinity College in Kandy enhanced his appeal,” Gunaratna said.

The death of Nilam and his background were reported widely in Sri Lanka. Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe told parliament that 35 Sri Lankan families had left for Syria to join the IS. But Rajapakshe was shouted down by Muslim MPs who maintained that he was lying to create animosity towards local Muslims.

The new Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government formed in January 2015, took no notice of its own Minister’s statement because national security was the least of its concerns, wedded as it was to the restoration of democracy and communal and religious harmony after the Rajapaksa era, which was dubbed authoritarian and communal.

If Nilam’s network here and abroad had been probed at that time, and action had been taken, the Easter Sunday blasts would not have taken place and 253 people would not have died,” Dr.Gunaratna remarked.

The new government not only ignored the advice of security officials but arrested and prosecuted them demoralizing and weakening the security establishment,” he added.

Dr.Gunaratna said that one of the lessons of the Easter Sunday carnage is that politicians should not interfere in security matters. Politicians are not trained to look at things through the security prism,” he said.

The Sri Lankan Security Forces, which are highly professional and which had defeated one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world, were disabled by political interference, the expert said.

He called for new laws because the present laws are inadequate to tackle many aspects of terrorism, such as the process of radicalization, preaching hatred and other activities inimical to social and religious harmony and national security.

The existing Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) cannot be used against those indulging in divisive radical propaganda. I have therefore proposed the adoption of a five-point plan to deal with radicalization.”

Giving details he said: There should be a Harmony Act on the lines of Singapore’s Harmony Act which will criminalize hate speech. Segregation of schools on the basis of ethnicity and religion must end, and all schools should be mixed. The present system of teaching only the religion of the student should stop and all students must go through an inter-faith course. Government must blacklist and punish preachers who preach hatred and animosity. Preachers must be given a license for two years at a time. Every preacher must have a No-Objection Certificate from the government.”

Turkey and the Maldives, though 100% Islamic, keep a close watch on what is said by clerics in the mosques and insist that they follow government’s guidelines. In Turkey, the government lays down the line to be take by the Imams evey week.

Dr.Gunaratna praised the attitude and work of the All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulema (ACJU) which has stood behind the people of Sri Lanka in the hour tragedy and loss.

The ACJU should be entrusted with the task of guiding preachers in the mosques. The preachers must be told to keep an eye on radicalization and take steps to prevent it. In this respect, the ACJU would be playing a role entirely in the interest of the Muslim community because all but a tiny fraction of them practice a beautiful form of Islam. They have been doing so all along,” Dr.Gunaratna said.

H.M Ameer, head of the Abdul Jawad Ali Waliullah Trust, speaking to this correspondent from the all-Muslim town of Kathankudy in the Eastern Province and the native place of Zahran, said that the Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem (JMI) is a shadowy organization about which little is known.

It was part of the NTJ and was used to carry out operations which the NTJ did not want to own. It was rather like the Elara force (Elalan Padai) at the time Tamil Tigers were active in the North areas. When the Tigers attacked Lankan Security Forces during a ceasefire period or when talks were on, they would feign ignorance and blame the shadowy Elara group for the trouble,” Ameer recalled.

(The image at the top is the site of the blast in Batticaloa town in East Sri Lanka)

Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, April 28 (newsin.asia): Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena will on Monday impose a ban on Muslim women wearing the face veil (the niqab/burqa) to ensure public safety, the Presidential Media Division said here on Sunday.

Though the measure is unlikely to meet any resistance from the Muslims, given the security situation, there is a feeling among Muslim leaders that an advice not to wear the face veil from the All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulema (ACJU) would have been more acceptable.

The President’s decision follows the suicide bomb attacks staged by Islamic State affiliates on three posh hotels in Colombo and three churches in the capital and two other towns on April 21 which led to the death of 253 people including 40 foreign nationals.

However, the President’s decision came as a surprise to people who were discussing the issue of the face veil with government Minister Thalatha Athukorala and the All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulema (ACJU) in the last couple of days.

The issue of the niqab (or burqa as it is called in Sri Lanka) came to the fore five days ago when a Member of Parliament Prof. Ashu Marasinghe moved a Private Members’s Bill outlawing the face veil as it hinders identification.

Meanwhile, in view of the security situation in the country, the All Ceylon Jamiyathul Ulema (ACJU) issued a press release saying that it is requesting Muslim women to remove the face veil when necessary. It did not say that Muslim should not wear the face veil.

Later on Sunday, at a meeting of all religious heads to sort out inter-faith matters in the context of the terrorist attacks, a Buddhist monk asked for a ban on the face veil. But the Catholic leader, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, said that asking for a ban would be improper. It is not right to dictate to Muslims on what practices they should follow. They know what their religion says. The Cardinal wanted the meeting to come to a workable solution based on consensus, which will take into account the needs of national security which had been very badly breached on Apri l 21.

The Muslim representatives backed the Cardinal as did Minister Thalatha Athukorala who represented the government. She categorically stated that she would go by the decision of the ACJU.

And the meeting decided to appeal to Muslim women not to wear the niqab (face veil). It was not a diktat but an advice.

After the meeting ended successfully, came a press release from Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe saying that he is not opposing a ban on the face veil. He said that the government is discussing the issue with the ACJU to make a suitable law on the ban.

This came as a surprise to the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka (MCSL) leader Hilmy Ahamad.

The Prime Minister’s statement has created confusion. Perhaps he was misinformed about the decision taken at the meeting of religious heads. It was clearly agreed that the ACJU will issue an advice to Muslim women to remove the veil, not to wear it. A ban was ruled out, ” Ahamad said.

I had asked for two weeks’ time to get the message across to all Muslim women in the country. But the ACJU said that it could do with just one week.”

A few years ago, the militant Buddhist group, the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) had agitated for a ban on the burqa and abhaya, the black gown worn by Muslim women influenced by Arabic culture imbibed through contacts with Saudi Arabia over the past 20 years.

Following the high decibel demand of the BBS, the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka appealed to Muslim women to abandon the black robe and black head cover, and opt for colorful gowns and head scarves. The MCSL even arranged for a system of exchanging black ones for colorful ones. But the project fizzled out when pressure from the BBS waned.

This time, however, it is different. It is the State which is wanting a ban and the Muslims have no option but to go along.

Given the magnitude of the Islamic State’s attacks on Easter Sunday, and the fears that these have generated in the general population through all classes and religions, resistance to the ban is expected to be extremely weak, if there is any resistence at all.

This will be so especially because the ACJU is not insisting that Muslims should cover their faces.