Western Province (NA): Timeline (Terrorist Activities) -2022

The main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) on January 3 urged the Government to summon Parliament immediately to discuss the burning problems people were beset with, reports The Island. Addressing the media at the Opposition Leader’s Office in Colombo, Chief Opposition Whip Kandy District SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said Parliament should be summoned without further delay as the country was facing massive foreign reserve crisis. “The government is trying to sell off national assets. Between 15 and 20 lands in Colombo are up for sale. Seven acres of prime land in Bogambara playground is to be sold. The government is trying to sell the Trincomalee oil tank farm. The agreements are to be signed while Parliament is closed. We need parliament open to debate the country’s problems,” Kiriella said. Read less...

A suspect who was remanded in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks was died on January 4 while receiving treatment at the Colombo National Hospital, reports Colombo Page. The deceased has been identified as Mohammed Kalin (42), a resident of Church Road, Kalmunai. According to the Prisons Spokesman Chandana Ekanayake, the suspect was remanded on April 6, 2021 in connection with the Easter Sunday attack. The suspect was admitted to the Colombo National Hospital on December 5 after receiving treatment at the Prison Hospital on November 23 due to an illness. He had died while receiving treatment as an inpatient at the Intermediate Coronary Care Unit (ICCU) of the Colombo National Hospital, Police told. Read less...

Colombo District Court on January 7 rejected a request made by former President Maithripala Sirisena that he be released from several civil lawsuits filed by the victims of Easter Sunday attacks, reports Daily Mirror. The relatives of those who have died during the suicide bomb blasts took place in Colombo and individuals who injured had filed 128 lawsuits before Colombo District Court claiming compensations from former President Maithreepala Sirisena and several others. President's Counsel Faizer Mustapha appearing for the former President made a request to release his client from these cases. He further contended that there is no legal basis to proceed with these lawsuits. President's Counsel Shamil Perera appearing for the aggrieved party raised objections for the request and said the application to release the defendant from the cases is contrary to the provisions of Civil Procedure Code. The victims alleged that the defendants including former President Sirisena have failed to perform their official duties entrusted to prevent the terrorist attacks that took place on April 21, 2019 which caused irreparable damages to them. Read less...

A hand grenade was recovered on January 11 at the premises of a church in Borella of Colombo District, reports News Wire. Police spokesman SSP Nihal Thalduwa said the hand grenade was recovered from the premises of the All-Saints’ Church in Borella. He further said that three suspects have been arrested in connection to the incident. The hand grenade had been found based on information given to the Police by an employee of the church. SSP Nihal Thalduwa said the hand grenade has been handed over to the Police Special Task Force to be diffused. Read less...

The case against Naufer Mawlawi and 24 other accused in the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks was postponed on January 12 by the Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar to March 3, reports Colombo Page. The trial of the 25 men accused of the Easter Sunday bomb attacks in Sri Lanka, which killed nearly 270 people and injured over 500 people when churches and luxury hotels were targeted by Islamic terrorist suicide bombers on 21 April 2019, taken up before a special three-judge bench of the High Court comprising Judges Damith Thotawatta, Amal Ranaraja and Nawarathna Marasinghe. Read less...

The former chief of Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) was released on bail by a Colombo Court on January 12, reports Daily Mirror. Usthadh Rasheed Hajjul Akbar (61) was arrested in August 2019, following the Easter Sunday bombings in April 2019 which killed over 270 people. Akbar headed JeI for 24 years – from 1994 to 2018. “There is no indictment against him and the attorney general agreed in court to release him on bail,” the sources said. Read less...

The main suspect involved in setting up a hand grenade inside the All-Saints’ Church in Borella of Colombo District was identified on January 12 as a 56-year-old who was associated with the church for nearly 16 years, reports Ada Derana. Following the discovery of the explosive material at around 4.40 p.m. on January 11, four suspects in total were taken into custody over the incident. According to the Police spokesman SSP Nihal Thalduwa, the hand grenade had been placed using sellotape, matchsticks, and incense sticks for it to catch fire and explode. Investigations have uncovered that the suspects had used a 13-year-old boy, who resides close to the church and frequents the premises, to place the hand grenade inside the church. Reportedly, the main suspect had been serving the church and residing at the premises over the past nine months. The investigators have managed to find parts of sellotape, matchsticks and incense sticks, which were used to set up the hand grenade, inside his living quarters. The Police are yet to uncover the reason for the suspect to place an explosive material inside the church, how he managed to obtain it and the individuals who aided and abetted him. Read less...

Whilst rejecting the information revealed by the Police on the recovering of a hand grenade at All Saints Church Borella in Colombo District on January 11, Archbishop of Colombo His Eminence Cardinal Malclom Ranjith at a press conference on January 13 called for a transparent probe on the incident, reports Daily Mirror. Cardinal Ranjith said “Police only viewed the CCTV footage in the church for some reason. The Sanchristian (caretaker) of the church was arrested only by viewing the video clips which were recorded after 3:00 pm on that day. I requested the parish priest to view the video clips recorded the whole day. It is revealed by the CCTV footage that a suspicious man enters the church and keeps something on the ground. Then he wears the traditional ‘sign of the cross’ which is a religious tradition practiced by the Catholics when entering the church and worshiping. However, this person does it in the wrong way. It could be concluded that through this man's action, he was not a catholic. Also, this person came in limping and when going back from the church he was walking in a stable manner. In such circumstances, we appeal to the police to conduct a proper investigation. One should not wear the uniforms if he cannot do his job in a proper manner.” Read less...

A retired doctor has been arrested in connection with the hand grenade planted inside All Saints’ Church in Borella of Colombo District, reports Ada Derana on January 18. He was taken into custody in the area of Piliyandala by the crime’s investigation unit of the Colombo South Division. According to the Police, lengthy interrogations into the 65-year-old suspect who was apprehended in the Panamura area in Embilipitiya had led the investigators to the arrest of this retired medical officer. Reportedly, the suspect, who previously served as a doctor of the Piliyandala District Hospital, had later run a private medical clinic in the proximity of the hospital. Investigators have uncovered that it was this retired doctor who handed over the hand grenade and money to the first suspect and the reason for this is yet to be uncovered. Read less...

Senior DIG Deshabandu Tennakoon on January 18 said before the trial-at-bar at the Colombo High Court that former IGP Pujitha Jayasundera had given a prior warning about the Easter Sunday attacks on Catholic Churches to four of the top police officers including DIG Western Police and to the DIG-in-charge of the STF, reports Daily Mirror. DIG Tennakoon made this assertion before the three judges of the trial-at-bar giving evidence, led by Deputy solicitor General Dileepa Pieris. DIG Tennakoon further said that on the day the suicide attack took place he was on leave. He also asserted that the information over the attack was given to the IGP by the State Intelligence Unit which the IGP had communicated to his subordinates to take appropriate action. The Attorney General had indicted former IGP Jayasundera before the Colombo Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar on 855 charges for his failure to take appropriate action to prevent the terrorist attacks that took place on Easter Sunday 2019 despite receiving adequate intelligence reports. Read less...

The Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar on January 19 concluded recording evidence in a case filed against former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando relating to the Easter Sunday bomb attack, reports Daily Mirror. Deputy Solicitor General Sudarshana de Silva appearing for the Attorney General informed court that the prosecution has concluded hearing evidence in the case. Accordingly, the High Court Trial-at-Bar bench announced that order regarding calling for defence evidence will be delivered on February 18. The Attorney General filed indictments consisting of 855 charges against former Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando and former IGP Pujith Jayasundara. The two former top officials have been accused of failing to take measures to prevent the Easter Sunday attacks despite having prior knowledge of the attack. Read less...

The Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) on January 19 recovered several firearms and swords in the house of retired doctor who was arrested in connection with the recovery of a hand grenade at the All-Saints’ Church in Borella of Colombo District, reports Daily Mirror. The Police have found four pistols, a revolver, two swords, a Rambo knife and an unidentified firearm from the residence in Piliyandala of Colombo District. The retired doctor was arrested on January 19 after information about him was revealed during a lengthy interrogation of the suspect arrested in Embilipitiya town of Ratnapura District. Read less...