UAE repatriates Lankans in connection with Easter attacks

COLOMBO: Five Sri Lankans wanted in connection with the deadly Easter bombings who were arrested in Dubai were repatriated on Friday, police said.

Among the suspects was Mohamed Milhan, a senior leader of the National Thowheeth Jama’ath (NTJ) jihadist group which was held responsible for the April 21 bombings that killed 258 people, police said.

"Officers of the Criminal Investigations Department brought the suspects back to Sri Lanka this morning," police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said in a statement. No further details were immediately available.

This is the second time that suspects had been arrested abroad in connection with the attacks against three churches and three luxury hotels in the country claimed by the Islamic State group.

Last month, army chief Mahesh Senanayake said two suspects were arrested in Qatar and Saudi Arabia. He did not disclose the nationalities of the suspects, but official sources said they were Sri Lankans.

Sri Lankan authorities have arrested just over 100 people who had links with the NTJ and its leader Zahran Hashim who was one of two suicide bombers who attacked the Shangri-La hotel in Colombo. Sri Lanka has been under a state of emergency since the attacks which also left 45 foreign nationals dead and wounded nearly 500 people.