Sri Lankan Leader Appoints New Acting Police Chief After Bombings - Reports

12:01 GMT, 29 April 2019

NEW DELHI (Sputnik) - Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena appointed on Monday Chandana Wickramaratne as the country's new acting police chief in light of the deadly Easter Sunday terror attacks, the Ada Derana news portal reported, citing the president's office.

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Sri Lanka's former police chief, Pujith Jayasundarac was forced out of his post on Friday, a day after Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando stepped down, the news portal said, citing government sources.

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Both officials were asked to resign by the president due to their failure to prevent the coordinated terrorist attacks that resulted in hundreds of deaths. According to Sirisena, neither Jayasundara nor Fernando had provided him with any intelligence data regarding the attacks, which, according to media reports, was available before the tragic events.

A series of deadly blasts hit the country on Easter Sunday, leaving hundreds of people killed and injured nationwide. Three more explosions rocked the country's eastern city of Kalmunai on Friday. The Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia) reportedly claimed responsibility for both attacks.

Sri Lankan Economic Reforms and Public Distribution Minister Harsha De Silva said last Monday that Indian and US intelligence services had briefed Sri Lanka on the terrorist attacks being plotted ahead of their execution. According to the minister, the information from foreign intelligence agencies did not get communicated to the right people, in particular, Sri Lanka’s prime minister and president.

Sri Lanka launched a criminal investigation immediately after the attacks, having already arrested over 100 suspects. According to prosecutors, nine suicide attackers carried out the bombings, eight of whom have already been identified.