By Tim Stickings For Mailonline and Afp
Published: 10:00 BST, 21 April 2019 | Updated: 10:00 BST, 21 April 2019
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At least 35 foreigners have died in the Easter Sunday bombings which targeted churches and hotels in Sri Lanka.
Citizens of Britain, the United States and the Netherlands are believed to be among the 156 dead with Japanese nationals also said to be injured.
St Anthony's Shrine in Colombo, the scene of one of the blasts, is a popular tourist site in the island nation's largest city.
The three hotels - the Cinnamon Grand, Shangri-La and Kingsbury - are also frequented by foreign visitors and hotel guests were among the dead today.
Ambulances and emergency workers outside St Anthony's Shrine (pictured) in Colombo today where one of the Easter Sunday blasts went off
Other blasts were reported at St. Sebastian's Church in Negombo, a majority-Catholic town, and at Zion Church in the eastern town of Batticalo.
Millions of tourists visit Sri Lanka every year but political crisis and religious tension have placed the industry under threat in recent months.
More than 2.4 million foreign holidaymakers visited the Asian country in 2017, spending some $3.2billion.
