Sri Lanka Easter Bombings Justice Sought

Seven years after the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka, survivors and victims' families continue to seek justice for the coordinated suicide attacks that killed 279 people and wounded 500. Initial inquiries linked local Islamists affiliated with the Islamic State group to the attacks. However, subsequent investigations have suggested a plot involving state security, including military intelligence, to create chaos and pave the way for Gotabaya Rajapaksa to come to power. Despite a Supreme Court ruling in January 2023 that found then-president Maithripala Sirisena and his officials failed to act on prior intelligence warnings from India — Indian intelligence agencies and ordered them to pay compensation, no one has been convicted. The recent arrest of retired Major General Suresh Sallay, a former intelligence chief linked to Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has reignited hopes for justice. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, leader of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka, continues to campaign for truth and justice, expressing regret that the attacks have become a political debate.