Sri Lanka blasts: Easter death toll rises to 290, over 500 injured

Colombo: The toll in a series of eight blasts targeting mostly churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Sunday has risen to 290, a police spokesman said on Monday.

More than 500 people were wounded in the blasts, he added, in the deadliest violence since the end of the country’s long-running civil war a decade ago.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Donald Trump and other world leaders condemned the attack and offered support.

Sri Lanka confirmed that 11 foreigners who died in the attacks had been identified — including citizens of India, Portugal, Turkey, the UK and US — and said 25 unidentified bodies believed to be foreigners were in a Colombo morgue.

Most were targeted at the Shangri-La, Kingsbury and Cinnamon Grand hotels in the capital.Several blasts occurred hours after the first explosions on Sunday, and experts detonated a pipe bomb found on a road near Colombo’s airport.

Authorities imposed a nationwide curfew and blocked platforms like Facebook and Whatsapp.

The Colombo Stock Exchange put its Monday opening on hold and schools will remain closed until Wednesday.

Sri Lankan Airlines Ltd. advised travellers to arrive four hours before their flights to undergo additional security checks.