The AchieVer Posted April 21, 2019 Share Posted April 21, 2019 Sri Lanka blocks social media after deadly Easter explosions More than 200 people are reported killed, with hundreds more hospitalized following eight blasts at churches and hotels. Sri Lankan forces secure the area around St. Anthony's Shrine after an explosion hit St Anthony's Church in Colombo on Easter Sunday. Getty Images Sri Lanka has temporarily shut down access to social media following coordinated multiple bombings on Easter Sunday that left scores dead and injured. More than 200 people were killed and hundreds more hospitalized with injuries from eight blasts at Roman Catholic churches and high-end hotels, according to multiple reports. The attacks struck at around 8:45 a.m. local time. Defense Minister Ruwan Wijewardene described the blasts as a terrorist incident, and blamed religious extremists. Seven suspects have been arrested, Wickremesinghe told reporters Sunday night, though no one immediately claimed responsibility for the blasts. The prime minister said he feared the violence could trigger instability in the small island nation at India's southern tip. The government clamped down on social media to prevent the spread of misinformation following the attacks, the president's secretary, Udaya Seneviratne, told The New York Times. "Please avoid propagating unverified reports and speculation," Wickremesinghe tweeted following the explosions. Local Roshni Fernando tweeted, "If I don't reply to your messages it is because WhatsApp and Facebook appears to have been shut down in Sri Lanka." Fernando told The Washington Post she grew up in London but recently moved to Sri Lanka and lives in the capital, Colombo, one of the cities targeted in the attacks. People can now only communicate through SMS here, or Twitter I guess," Fernando said, adding that she was also unable to access YouTube and Instagram. Some users on social media said they were still able to communicate with friends and family on apps like Snapchat and WhatsApp. The Sri Lankan government also imposed an immediate nationwide curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. following the blasts. "The government is taking immediate steps to contain this situation," the prime minister tweeted. Condolences and condemnation poured in from political and religious leaders around the world Sunday. Pope Francis addressed the killings at the end of his traditional Easter Sunday blessing. "I want to express my loving closeness to the Christian community, targeted while they were gathered in prayer, and all the victims of such cruel violence," the pope said from the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica. "I entrust to the Lord all those who were tragically killed and pray for the injured and all those who are suffering as a result of this dramatic event." New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern condemned the "devastating" attacks, and referred to the March 15 shootings at two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch in which 50 died. After a gunman used Facebook to broadcast the deadly shooting, Facebook said it might limit who can stream live video. Source Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mp68terr Posted April 21, 2019 Share Posted April 21, 2019 3 hours ago, The AchieVer said: The government clamped down on social media to prevent the spread of misinformation following the attacks... Easier to fight misinformation by cutting the communication channels than to fight misinformation by spreading true information through the same channels... Could be that the official information is not trusted, even if possibly real. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The AchieVer Posted April 21, 2019 Author Share Posted April 21, 2019 1 minute ago, mp68terr said: Easier to fight misinformation by cutting the communication channels than to fight misinformation by spreading true information through the same channels... Could be that the official information is not trusted, even if possibly real. Not really, at the time of chaos and panic, there is a strong possibility of misinformation being circulated. Regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mp68terr Posted April 21, 2019 Share Posted April 21, 2019 1 minute ago, The AchieVer said: at the time of chaos and panic, there is a strong possibility of misinformation being circulated True... but one could expect that the people in charge could fight misinformation by spreading truth and targeting fake-news as such. Not easy, clearly not easy. It shows the power of the social medias to spread fake-news and the weakness of those trying to expose the truth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The AchieVer Posted April 21, 2019 Author Share Posted April 21, 2019 8 minutes ago, mp68terr said: Not easy, clearly not easy. It shows the power of the social medias to spread fake-news and the weakness of those trying to expose the truth Yes, it’s not at that easy. Sad but the hard reality ☺️ Regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truemate Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 Denmark’s richest man loses three children in Sri Lanka bombings Fashion tycoon Anders Holch Povlsen lost three of his four children in the Sri Lanka terrorist attacks on Sunday. Povlsen was reportedly injured in the bombing. The family was visiting the country over the Easter holiday. “Unfortunately, we can confirm the news is true,” Jesper Stubkier, spokesman for Povlsen’s fashion firm Bestseller, told Danish news agency Ritzau. https://www.rt.com/business/457221-billionaire-children-sri-lanka/ Pastor confronted bomber moments before attack Fr Kumaran, pastor of the Zion Church in Batticaloa, was quick to spot the stranger at his doorstep. Carrying a bag and dressed casually, the man did not look familiar. It was 8.30am and the church was packed with members of the Easter congregation, all local residents. "I asked him who he was and his name. He said he was a Muslim and wanted to visit the church," Fr Kumaran told from Batticaloa . As he argued with the man, the suspected suicide bomber, some priests ushered Fr Kumaran into the church as it was getting late for the Mass. As he walked towards the podium, he heard an ear-shattering explosion. As he turned, what he saw shook him. Blood was splattered all over the walls and bodies lay on the floor, many of them children, who had just finished their Sunday classes on the first floor of the church. "Twenty-eight people were killed, among them 12 children. Two are critical," said Fr Kumaran, sounding distressed. Batticaloa, capital of the Eastern Province, is in a state of shock. "I have never heard the sound of a bomb explosion before. We initially thought it was the burst of a tyre," said S Vikash, 21, a medical representative who lived in Kallady, 3km from the church. "When we realised it was an explosion, we followed the sound of fire engines and ambulances. The scene was terrifying. There was blood and body parts strewn all over. It was heart-rending to see the bodies of children, " he said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truemate Posted April 23, 2019 Share Posted April 23, 2019 Sri Lankan police find 87 bomb detonators at Colombo’s main bus station – spokesperson Sri Lankan police found 87 bomb detonators at the bus station in the nation’s largest city, following horrific bombings which killed 290 people on Easter Sunday. The detonators were discovered on Monday at a private bus stand located in the Pettah neighborhood of Colombo, police said. The officers initially found just a dozen devices, but later retrieved 75 more while clearing the garbage heap. Police launched an investigation into the incident. It is unclear whether the devices had anything to do with the multiple coordinated bombings which took place on Easter Sunday. https://www.rt.com/news/457210-sri-lanka-police-87-detonators/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.