- Prez says CID will now include previously undisclosed parts of the Presidential COI’s report in ongoing investigations
- Prez claims previous investigation didn’t focus on exposing ‘mastermind’ behind attack
President and Defence Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake yesterday (20) stated that the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) would now fully study the complete report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, including parts that were previously withheld, and take forward investigations to uncover those responsible.
Speaking at a political rally in Polonnaruwa yesterday (20), the President claimed that previous administrations had not made all sections of the COI report available to the public or the CID for investigative purposes. He added that the current Government had now handed over the complete report to the CID and instructed it to study the contents thoroughly and carry out a full investigation.
“There were hidden sections in the COI report which were not shared earlier. But now, we’ve sent all of it to the CID. There are also various unanswered questions and doubts that still exist. Who left a jacket at the site where two Police officers were killed in Vavunathivu before the terror attacks? Who used certain mobile phones with specific IMEI numbers? These are things that the CID would have to investigate fully,” he opined.
Dissanayake also said that it had now been six years since the terror attacks, and for nearly five and a half years – from April 2019 to September 2024 – the investigations were not focused on exposing the real masterminds behind the attacks, but rather on covering up them.
“The Government that came to power in 2019 and the one that came into power after that (the Government led by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe) had no interest in holding the actual planners accountable. Step by step, we have taken and are taking the necessary measures to bring the real perpetrators before the law,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Spokesperson for the Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini said that since the change in the Government last year (2024), investigations have resumed in a more organised and transparent manner. “We observe that there is progress. That is why we, as the church, request the Government to give its fullest support to the investigation teams. It’s also important that the Attorney General’s (AG) Department handles the legal process impartially, independently, and transparently,” he said.
On 21 April 2019 Easter Sunday, three churches (St. Sebastian’s Church in Katuwapitiya, St. Anthony’s Church in Kochchikade, and Zion Church in Batticaloa) and three luxury hotels in Colombo (Cinnamon Grand Colombo, The Kingsbury Colombo, and Shangri-La Colombo) were targeted in a series of co-ordinated suicide bombings. Later that day, another two bomb explosions took place at a house in Dematagoda and the Tropical Inn Lodge in Dehiwala. More than 270 people excluding the bombers were killed in the bombings, including about 45 foreign nationals, while at least 500 were injured.