Two Former Sri Lanka Officials Sentenced To Death For Negligence In Deadly Easter Bombings

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — A Sri Lankan tribunal connected Friday sentenced a erstwhile constabulary main and a erstwhile apical Defense Ministry charismatic to decease aft uncovering them blameworthy of criminal negligence that allowed Islamic State-inspired explosive attacks connected Easter Sunday successful 2019, which killed much than 260 people.

A decease punishment successful Sri Lanka typically intends life successful situation because nan state has had a moratorium connected executions since 1976. Current President Anura Kumara Dissanayake supports maintaining nan moratorium.

Former Police Chief Pujith Jayasundara and erstwhile Defense Ministry Secretary Hemasiri Fernando were convicted and sentenced Friday by nan three-member High Court bench. They person nan correct to entreaty nan ruling.

The near-simultaneous bombings successful 2019 were carried retired astatine 3 tourer hotels and 3 churches — 2 of them Catholic and 1 Protestant — and killed 42 foreigners. A parliamentary committee recovered that constabulary and intelligence officials grounded to enactment connected repeated intelligence warnings of nan attacks.

The tribunal delivered nan verdict against Jayasundara first and past against Fernando later successful nan day. The decease condemnation came arsenic a mostly decision, pinch 2 judges agreeing and 1 judge penning a dissent arguing that some should spell free.

Two Sri Lanka-based Islamic militant groups were accused of carrying retired nan bombings, and nary of those believed to person been straight progressive are living. Separate tests are taking spot for group allegedly connected pinch nan perpetrators.

Sri Lanka’s Catholic Church has claimed that those identified truthful acold arsenic perpetrators are not nan masterminds down nan bombings, and that location was a bigger conspiracy down nan attacks.

Francis writes for nan Associated Press.