At least 156 dead, hundreds injured in multiple blasts at churches, hotels on Easter Sunday

[mauGR1]

4 minutes ago, elliss said:

 

  Murder, In the name of Religion . 

    A World, without any religion , would be a civilised World .

      

 

 

Sorry, but i disagree, when religion will be out of the equation, there will be other "reasons" for the people to kill each other.

The "divide and conquer" strategy will always be there of course.

[LomSak27]

Looks like the Religion of Peace, is hard at work this holiday.

[elliss]

15 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

Sorry, but i disagree, when religion will be out of the equation, there will be other "reasons" for the people to kill each other.

The "divide and conquer" strategy will always be there of course.

       Point taken , I value your opinion. 

       Religion , is the opium of the people. its only purpose  .

    Survival,   Darwin , comes  to mind , survival of the strongest species,

        those without religion ?.

 

 

[mauGR1]

2 minutes ago, elliss said:

       Point taken , I value your opinion. 

       Religion , is the opium of the people. its only purpose  .

    Survival,   Darwin , comes  to mind , survival of the strongest species,

        those without religion. 

Thanks, i think religion will become obsolete in less than 20 years, but it will take forever for the humankind to become really civilised.

[Kinnock]

22 minutes ago, mauGR1 said:

Thanks, i think religion will become obsolete in less than 20 years, but it will take forever for the humankind to become really civilised.

I wish that was right - but after over 2000 years we still have people who rely on biased interpretations of ancient folk stories to tell them how to dress, what and when to eat and who to hate.

 

Uneducated or badly educated people will always be vulnerable to the toxic influence of the worst religions, and there's an endless supply of under-educated people.

[mauGR1]

2 minutes ago, Kinnock said:

I wish that was right - but after over 2000 years we still have people who rely on biased interpretations of ancient folk stories to tell them how to dress, what and when to eat and who to hate.

 

Uneducated or badly educated people will always be vulnerable to the toxic influence of the worst religions, and there's an endless supply of under-educated people.

Have you noticed how things are changing very fast in the last years ? And they will change faster and faster.

Religion is a false problem imo, but time will tell.

Back on topic, i'd bet that the average Muslims are horrified by the bombings, just as much as the average people.

[Tug]

I hope the criminals who did this are caught and injure long painfull deaths and that goes for whatever religion  the murders are just disgusting 

[nausea]

Muslim's make up 9.7% of tbe population. <deleted>. Talk about a deadly infection.

[F430murci]

Bitter people want to make this stuff about religion.  This has less to do with religion and more to do with shittie people, that feel really shittie about themselves wanting to hurt others that seem happier and more content then them.  Some of these angry little people may try and convince others it is for a higher purpose or greater good, i.e., religion, but it ain't.  That is another way of trying to compensate for their deep rooted inferiority complexes and feeling of insignificance.  The fact is, they are miserable and want to inflict misery on others.

[lannarebirth]

5 minutes ago, F430murci said:

 This has less to do with religion and more to do with shittie people, that feel really shittie about themselves wanting to hurt others that seem happier and more content then them.  Some of these angry little people may try and convince others it is for a higher purpose or greater good, i.e., religion, but it ain't.  That is another way of trying to compensate for their deep rooted inferiority complexes and feeling of insignificance.  The fact is, they are miserable and want to inflict misery on others.

 

That description fits most of the people one sees on antisocial media.

 

 

 

 

[bomber]

only country i was pleased to exit,i missed the airport bombings around 2000 by 24-36 hours

[webfact]

UPDATE:

 

Bombs kill more than 200 in Sri Lankan churches, hotels on Easter Sunday

By Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez

 

A crime scene official inspects the site of a bomb blast inside a church in Negombo, Sri Lanka April 21, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer

 

COLOMBO (Reuters) - More than 200 people were killed and at least 450 injured in bomb blasts that ripped through churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, the first major attack on the Indian Ocean island since the end of a civil war 10 years ago.

 

The government declared a curfew in Colombo and blocked access to social media and messaging sites, including Facebook and WhatsApp. It was unclear when the curfew would be lifted.

 

But in a sign that the attacks on three churches and four hotels could lead to communal violence, police reported on Sunday night that there had been a petrol bomb attack on a mosque in the northwestern district of Puttalum and arson attacks on two shops owned by Muslims in the western district of Kalutara.

 

The government has acknowledged that it had "prior information" of attacks on churches involving a little known local Islamist group but didn't do enough about it.

 

Out of Sri Lanka's total population of around 22 million, 70 percent are Buddhist, 12.6 percent Hindu, 9.7 percent Muslim and 7.6 percent Christian, according to the country's 2012 census.

 

In February-March last year, there were a series of religious clashes between Sinhalese Buddhists and Muslims in the towns of Ampara and Kandy.

 

POLICE KILLED

On Sunday afternoon, three police officers were killed during a security forces raid on a house in theSri Lankan capital several hours after the attacks, many of which officials said were suicide bomb explosions. Police reported an explosion at the house.

 

Thirteen arrests have been made, all of whom are Sri Lankans, police said.

 

"Altogether, we have information of 207 dead from all hospitals. According to the information as of now we have 450 injured people admitted to hospitals," police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera told reporters.

 

Government officials said that 32 foreigners were killed and 30 injured in the explosions that tore through congregations and gatherings in hotels in Colombo, Negombo and Batticaloa.

 

They included five British people, two of whom had dual U.S. citizenship, and three Indians, according to officials in those countries.

Also among the fatalities were three people from Denmark, two from Turkey, and one from Portugal,Sri Lankan officials said. There were also Chinese and Dutch among the dead, according to media reports.

 

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said U.S. nationals were among those killed, but did not give details.

 

PRIOR INFORMATION

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attacks in a country which was at war for decades with Tamil separatists until 2009, a time when bomb blasts in the capital were common.

 

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremsinghe acknowledged that the government had some "prior information of the attack", though ministers were not told.

 

He said there wasn't an adequate response and there needed to be an inquiry into how the information was used.

He also said the government needs to look at the international links of a local militant group.

 

Agence France Presse reported that it had seen documents showing that Sri Lanka's police chief Pujuth Jayasundara issued an intelligence alert to top officers 10 days ago, warning that suicide bombers planned to hit "prominent churches". He cited a foreign intelligence service as reporting that a little-known Islamist group was involved.

 

A Sri Lanka police spokesman said he was not aware of the intelligence report.

 

BLOOD ON CHURCH PEWS

Dozens were killed in one of the blasts at St. Sebastian's Gothic-style Catholic church in Katuwapitiya, north of Colombo. Gunasekera said the police suspected a suicide attack there. Pictures from the site showed bodies on the ground, blood on the church pews and a destroyed roof.

 

Local media reported 25 people were also killed in an attack on an evangelical church in Batticaloa in Eastern Province.

 

The hotels hit in Colombo were the Shangri-La, the Kingsbury, the Cinnamon Grand and the Tropical Inn near the national zoo. There was no word on casualties in the hotels, but a witness told local TV he saw some body parts, including a severed head, lying on the ground beside the Tropical Inn.

 

The first six explosions were all reported within a short period in the morning just as church services were starting.

 

One of the explosions was at St. Anthony's Shrine, a Catholic church in Kochcikade, Colombo, a tourist landmark.

 

The explosion at the Tropical Inn happened later and there was an eighth explosion at the house that was the subject of the police raid in Colombo.

 

"I strongly condemn the cowardly attacks on our people today. I call upon all Sri Lankans during this tragic time to remain united and strong," said Sri Lanka's prime minister in a Tweet.

 

"Please avoid propagating unverified reports and speculation. The government is taking immediate steps to contain this situation."

President Maithripala Sirisena said he had ordered the police special task force and military to investigate who was behind the attacks and their agenda.

 

The military was deployed, a military spokesman said, and security stepped up at Colombo's international airport. Schools, universities and the Colombo Stock Exchange will be closed on Monday as the island state tries to recover from the attacks.

 

ATTACKS ON CHRISTIANS

The Christian community had already felt under pressure in Sri Lanka in recent years.

 

Last year, there were 86 verified incidents of discrimination, threats and violence against Christians, according to the National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka (NCEASL), which represents more than 200 churches and other Christian organisations.

 

This year, the NCEASL recorded 26 such incidents, including one in which Buddhist monks allegedly attempted to disrupt a Sunday worship service, with the last one reported on March 25.

 

The heads of major governments condemned the attacks.

 

U.S. President Donald Trump said America offered "heartfelt condolences" to the Sri Lankan people and stood ready to help, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there was "no place for such barbarism in our region", and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the bombings were "an assault on all of humanity".

 

Pope Francis, addressing people in St. Peter's Square, said: "I wish to express my affectionate closeness to the Christian community, hit while it was gathered in prayer, and to all the victims of such cruel violence."

 

Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Day after his death on the cross.

 

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand, where a gunman shot 50 people dead in two mosques last month, said in a statement: "Collectively we must find the will and the answers to end such violence."

 

(Writing by John Chambers and Martin Howell; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan, William Maclean)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-04-22

[simple1]

7 hours ago, Bipolar said:

the poor white guy who shot many muslims

For the moment it has not been confirmed which group carried out the terrible murders in Sri Lanka which also killed numerous children and will have caused life changing injuries for many. Social Media in Sri Lanka has been temporally closed down due to concern of rumour mongering with ramifications for civil disorder. Your post is an excellent example of why the decision was made by Sri Lankan authorities, let alone the awful sympathetic comment for a mass murderer above.

 

Once it is confirmed a particular group is responsible for this evil incident, focus on them.

[Thainesss]

1 hour ago, simple1 said:

For the moment it has not been confirmed which group carried out the terrible murders in Sri Lanka which also killed numerous children and will have caused life changing injuries for many. Social Media in Sri Lanka has been temporally closed down due to concern of rumour mongering with ramifications for civil disorder. Your post is an excellent example of why the decision was made by Sri Lankan authorities, let alone the awful sympathetic comment for a mass murderer above.

 

Once it is confirmed a particular group is responsible for this evil incident, focus on them.

 

Man the hypocrisy here is astounding, and your defense of Sri Lanka cutting off communications during a crisis is nuts.

[simple1]

7 minutes ago, Thainesss said:

 

Man the hypocrisy here is astounding, and your defense of Sri Lanka cutting off communications during a crisis is nuts.

What hypocrisy? Back up your claim with facts rather than innuendo.

 

The Sri Lankan decision re Social media is based upon their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims - it ain't Kansas

[Thainesss]

9 minutes ago, simple1 said:

What hypocrisy? Back up your claim with facts rather than innuendo.

 

The Sri Lankan decision re Social media is based upon their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims - it ain't Kansas

 

The hypocrisy is your posts in this thread compared to your posts in all the NZ shooter threads. Deny and deflect all you want, I dont care. It wont change the hypocrisy. 

 

I mean just look at the way you framed your second sentence - "their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims"

 

Even here you framed it (without evidence) like the Muslims are the victims and need protection, yet implore and shame others to show restraint and not finger point. 

 

The government shouldn't ever cut communications in a time of crisis. People need to talk, and people need to know whats going on, and people need to see whats happening. I would say that Sri Lanka cut comms to stop information from getting out into the mainstream worldwide media, not to help its citizens.

[ravip]

4 hours ago, nausea said:

Muslim's make up 9.7% of tbe population. <deleted>. Talk about a deadly infection.

...and they are increasing very rapidly.

[ravip]

31 minutes ago, simple1 said:

What hypocrisy? Back up your claim with facts rather than innuendo.

 

The Sri Lankan decision re Social media is based upon their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims - it ain't Kansas

...and one reason Whatsapp limited forwards only to 5 addresses. To prevent rumour mongering. It is difficult today when social media is restricted, but in a situation like this, things are very different.

[simple1]

2 minutes ago, Thainesss said:

 

The hypocrisy is your posts in this thread compared to your posts in all the NZ shooter threads. Deny and deflect all you want, I dont care. It wont change the hypocrisy. 

 

I mean just look at the way you framed your second sentence - "their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims"

 

Even here you framed it (without evidence) like the Muslims are the victims and need protection, yet implore and shame others to show restraint and not finger point. 

 

The government shouldn't ever cut communications in a time of crisis. People need to talk, and people need to know whats going on, and people need to see whats happening. I would say that Sri Lanka cut comms to stop information from getting out into the mainstream worldwide media, not to help its citizens.

So you have no facts, only innuendo i.e. personal attack. Calls via Social media for Buddhists to attack Muslims in Sri Lanka is well covered in the media, do your fact checking before posting more nonsense.

 

Again Sri Lanka government decision, it is not the USA. Right of Centre people also wish to excuse or justify the right for hate speech / generalised vilification. there is now a definite trend by governments to crack down on such activity

[ravip]

8 minutes ago, Thainesss said:

 

The hypocrisy is your posts in this thread compared to your posts in all the NZ shooter threads. Deny and deflect all you want, I dont care. It wont change the hypocrisy. 

 

I mean just look at the way you framed your second sentence - "their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims"

 

Even here you framed it (without evidence) like the Muslims are the victims and need protection, yet implore and shame others to show restraint and not finger point. 

 

The government shouldn't ever cut communications in a time of crisis. People need to talk, and people need to know whats going on, and people need to see whats happening. I would say that Sri Lanka cut comms to stop information from getting out into the mainstream worldwide media, not to help its citizens.

Different people have different ideas. Everyone thinks he is correct. Situations like this is due to similar patterns of thinking.

[ravip]

Outraged by terror attacks: UN Chief

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he is outraged by the terrorist attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, a sacred day for Christians around the world.

[Orton Rd]

4 hours ago, F430murci said:

Bitter people want to make this stuff about religion.  This has less to do with religion and more to do with shittie people, that feel really shittie about themselves wanting to hurt others that seem happier and more content then them.  Some of these angry little people may try and convince others it is for a higher purpose or greater good, i.e., religion, but it ain't.  That is another way of trying to compensate for their deep rooted inferiority complexes and feeling of insignificance.  The fact is, they are miserable and want to inflict misery on others.

It has everything to do with religion, everything. The jihadists die happily because they believe to die following what they think the will of Allah is means all their sins will be wiped out and they will be rewarded in heaven with the famous virgins, what female terrorists get is never mentioned. You should read those certain religious books that inspire this and which directly call for the killing of unbelievers and 'troublemakers'.

[lannarebirth]

43 minutes ago, simple1 said:

What hypocrisy? Back up your claim with facts rather than innuendo.

 

The Sri Lankan decision re Social media is based upon their experience with local Buddhist extremists using Social Media to encourage violent attacks on local Muslims - it ain't Kansas

 

Or perhaps the names of those who dropped the ball with what seemed like some pretty good intelligence.

[Thainesss]

4 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Right of Centre people also wish to excuse or justify the right for hate speech / generalised vilification. there is now a definite trend by governments to crack down on such activity

 

Not in the USA thank god. There is no such thing as 'hate speech' in law terms, its a stupid term fabricated by the social justice crowd to stop people from sharing ideas they dont like. People fought wars and millions died to have the right to free speech (and yes that includes speech you dont like) so Id really appreciate if you'd spare us all your justification for totalitarianism. 

 

9 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Calls via Social media for Buddhists to attack Muslims in Sri Lanka is well covered in the media, do your fact checking before posting more nonsense.

 

Calls via social for muslims to attack buddhists are also covered well in the media, well, until they cut off social media. 

[steven100]

oh dear .... not a safe place to travel

[Thainesss]

1 minute ago, lannarebirth said:

Or perhaps the names of those who dropped the ball with what seemed like some pretty good intelligence.

 

Exactly. No idea why this is ignored. Well actually I have a pretty good idea.

[mokwit]

5 hours ago, F430murci said:

Bitter people want to make this stuff about religion.  This has less to do with religion and more to do with shittie people, that feel really shittie about themselves wanting to hurt others that seem happier and more content then them.  Some of these angry little people may try and convince others it is for a higher purpose or greater good, i.e., religion, but it ain't.  That is another way of trying to compensate for their deep rooted inferiority complexes and feeling of insignificance.  The fact is, they are miserable and want to inflict misery on others.

You mean Social Justice Warriors? Another totalitarian cult that seeks to force it's cult views on others.

[lannarebirth]

2 minutes ago, Thainesss said:

 

Exactly. No idea why this is ignored. Well actually I have a pretty good idea.

 

It's the same as Thailand, really. All dictums are in the interests of those in power, never in the interests of those they hold power over.

[mokwit]

7 minutes ago, Thainesss said:

Not in the USA thank god. There is no such thing as 'hate speech' in law terms, its a stupid term fabricated by the social justice crowd to stop people from sharing ideas they dont like. People fought wars and millions died to have the right to free speech (and yes that includes speech you dont like) so Id really appreciate if you'd spare us all your justification for totalitarianism. 

+1 Seconded. It is a political construct of the Left designed to stop the truth becoming known. They need this because they promote a completely false narrative that can't stand up to criticism.

[Thainesss]

1 minute ago, lannarebirth said:

It's the same as Thailand, really. All dictums are in the interests of those in power, never in the interests of those they hold power over.

 

True fact, and thats why I dont understand why people are soooo willing to handover their liberty for a little bit of perceived safety, when the entire system is geared to give the wrong people all the power.