Easter attack: Who is telling the truth?

The Easter Sunday terror attacks of 2019 remain one of the most devastating tragedies in Sri Lanka’s recent history. It claimed the lives not only of Sri Lankans, but also of foreign nationals. Therefore, countries such as the United States also have a responsibility to determine the real culprits.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted an investigation and identified Zahran Hashim as the mastermind.

The FBI reports, along with inputs from other foreign agencies that assisted post-blast investigations, have reinforced the conclusion that Zahran played a central role in planning and directing the coordinated strikes carried out by local radicalised cells affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS).

Similarly, investigative assistance provided by Australian authorities, including forensic and intelligence cooperation, has contributed to mapping networks, confirming the identities of perpetrators, and strengthening the evidentiary base linking the attackers to transnational extremist structures. These external inputs, taken together, broadly support the view that the bombings were locally executed, but internationally inspired and ideologically linked.

However, differences have emerged within Sri Lanka over the question of the mastermind. The current government and the Catholic Church portray a different narrative, and investigations are now underway.

These perspectives have often pointed to alleged intelligence failures, lapses in prevention, and questions around possible higher-level facilitation or negligence. All in all, the narrative suggests that the attack may have been orchestrated to gain political mileage, allegedly to influence the election of Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa to office by capitalising on the national security sentiment triggered by the attacks.

It is difficult to dismiss the FBI report, given that the United States has a legitimate interest in investigating the incident. A number of US nationals were killed in the bombings. Similarly, other countries such as the United Kingdom and China also have a stake, as their citizens were victims.

A key concern arising from this situation is the way foreign investigative contributions are being publicly understood. References to FBI findings, for instance, have been cited in public discourse as affirming Zahran Hashim’s central role. However, there has been limited effort by the Sri Lankan state to systematically present these international findings alongside domestic investigative conclusions in a consolidated format. As a result, the public is often left to interpret fragmented references.

This gap has broader implications. In this case, where national trauma intersects with international terrorism investigations, clarity isn’t merely a procedural requirement, but a matter of public trust. The victims include Sri Lankans of multiple faiths as well as foreign nationals, underscoring the global relevance of the tragedy. In such a context, consistency in communicating investigative outcomes is essential to prevent misunderstanding and speculation.

Sri Lanka’s Catholic Church, which has been at the forefront of calls for justice for victims, has repeatedly emphasised the need for full disclosure and accountability.

It’s incumbent upon the government, once again, to state its position on the FBI findings. The country deserves an answer to this question.

The United States, in its Country Reports on Terrorism 2019: Sri Lanka, also referred to the ISIS-inspired attackers as the perpetrators.

ISIS-inspired terrorists conducted a series of suicide attacks against churches and hotels across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, resulting in hundreds of casualties. Then ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi publicly praised the attacks, illustrating that ISIS remained determined, following its defeat in Syria and Iraq, to continue its global campaign through affiliated branches and inspired attacks. The attacks also led to isolated outbreaks of anti-Muslim violence, the report stated.

The National People’s Power (NPP) came to power with the promise of identifying the mastermind, or “mahamolakaru”, of this attack. The question therefore remains: who is correct—the FBI, the Catholic Church, or the NPP government?

The government must clearly state its position; otherwise, attention will be diverted by a narrative that is yet to be conclusively established. Alternatively, the matter should be referred to the judiciary after the conclusion of ongoing investigations for determination.

The Easter Sunday bombings are not only a domestic concern but also an international one, as a number of foreign nationals, including five Americans and six Chinese ocean scientists, were among those killed. Sanity should prevail in the end.