Three men set off explosives that killed themselves, three women and six children inside what was believed to be a jihadist hideout near the eastern town of Kalmunai.
NEW DELHI – Fifteen people including six children died in a battle between Sri Lankan security forces and suicide bombers who blew themselves up in the latest fallout from the Easter attacks, police said Saturday.
Police and troops have stepped up searches after the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attacks on three churches and three luxury hotels, which killed least 253 people and injured 500. An IS flag and uniforms similar to those worn by the eight fighters in the video were also found, police said.Authorities named Hashim's group, National Thowheeth Jama'ath , as the perpetrators of the attacks. They announced Friday that he had been killed in the bombing of the Shangri-La hotel in Colombo.
Police chief Pujith Jayasundara became the second high-ranking official to resign over the blunders Friday after top defence ministry official Hemasiri Fernando stepped down.Sri Lanka's Catholic leader, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, the archbishop of Colombo, has said he felt "betrayed" by the government's failure to act on the warnings.
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