Sri Lanka Arrests Controversial Former Intelligence Chief Over 2019 Easter Bombings
Sri Lankan authorities have arrested retired army major general Suresh Sallay, the country's former intelligence chief, in connection with the devastating 2019 Easter Sunday suicide bombings that killed nearly 270 people. The arrest comes just ahead of the seventh anniversary of the coordinated attacks that targeted churches and hotels across the island nation.
Arrest Details and Allegations
Police confirmed that Sallay was detained from a Colombo suburb on Wednesday based on evidence uncovered during investigations into what remains one of Sri Lanka's deadliest terrorist incidents in recent history. Senior deputy inspector general Sajeewa Medawatte stated at a special briefing that the arrest followed substantial evidence linking Sallay to the attacks, while police spokesman Fredrick Wootler revealed the Criminal Investigation Department was examining possible "links or lapses" by the former intelligence official.
At the time of the April 21, 2019 attacks, Sallay was serving in a diplomatic role in Malaysia as an army brigadier. He was later appointed director of the State Intelligence Service in late 2019 following Gotabaya Rajapaksa's election as president. The six simultaneous bombings sent shockwaves through Sri Lanka, reviving traumatic memories of the country's 26-year civil war marked by suicide bombings and guerrilla warfare.
International Connections and Previous Investigations
Two days after the bombings, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks, releasing a video showing eight men pledging allegiance to then-leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. This marked the first known presence of the terrorist organization in Sri Lanka. In 2021, US authorities charged three Sri Lankans with supporting the Easter Sunday attacks, which killed five Americans among 45 foreign nationals. These individuals are among 25 suspects indicted before Sri Lanka's High Court.
The United Nations has previously urged Sri Lanka to release withheld portions of earlier inquiries into the bombings, highlighting ongoing international scrutiny of the investigation process. The Sri Lankan defence ministry has consistently denied any government involvement in the attacks despite mounting allegations.
Channel 4 Documentary Revelations
In 2023, a Channel 4 documentary reported that Sallay had direct links with the bombers through a man named Azad Maulana, who claimed to have arranged a meeting between Sallay and the local Islamic State-inspired group Thowheed Jamath. According to Maulana's testimony, this meeting allegedly hatched a plot to create insecurity in Sri Lanka that would enable Rajapaksa's presidential election victory later that year.
Maulana, a former spokesperson for a Tamil Tigers breakaway group that became a government proxy militia, stated he recognized the attackers' faces from security camera footage as the same individuals he had arranged to meet with Sallay. These allegations have fueled persistent questions about potential intelligence failures or complicity in the attacks that devastated Christian worshippers and hotel guests during Easter celebrations.
The arrest represents a significant development in the long-running investigation into the bombings that killed 269 people and injured hundreds more. As Sri Lanka approaches the seventh anniversary of the tragedy, victims' families continue to seek answers about how such a coordinated attack could occur despite prior intelligence warnings.
