Nearly 15,000 knew of Easter Sunday attacks including HarinF & Diplomatic Missions
In October 2020 the former head of State Intelligence Service Senior DIG Nilantha Jayawardena told the Presidential Commission of Inquiry that nearly 15,000 people were aware of the Easter Sunday attacks 10 days BEFORE THE ATTACKS (11 April 2019) & this included diplomatic missions & Parliament. What a shocking number. Does this include the Church hierarchy as well? It certainly did include Catholic Minister of the then ruling government HarinF. What is the legal position for anyone knowing about an impending crime & not doing anything about it while making noise now to cover up their guilty conscience? Has the members of the Church hierarchy been questioned if they too knew? Is this why they were not present at the Church on Easter Sunday & not a single Church father died.
Final death toll was 269 (excluding the attackers).
38 foreigners are among the dead – including British, Indian, Danish, Dutch, Swiss, Spanish, US, Australian and Turkish nationals.
Over 500 injured.
The 15000 who knew about a likely attack by religious extremists included Diplomatic Missions & Parliament – are they all not accountable for these dead?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48002169
8000 officers in the Western Province. Over 5000 in the STF. Diplomatic Missions were aware of it by 20thApril. Entire Parliament had to have known as their security were informed but the ‘decision makers of this country say they were not privy to this information”.
Former SIS Head Nilantha says he will take responsibility for events until 7 April 2019 only.
- SIS had given information about Zaharan to the foreign intelligence services & foreign intel was briefed with SIS head functioning as translator during these briefings.
- SIS head informed the court that they had raised the red flag about Zaharan since 2016.
- SIS informs that even Zaharan may have also been aware of the intelligence warnings IF 15,000 were made aware of it.
- SIS informs that the VIP Security Division was allocated 2 personal security officers per parliamentarian & so 450 security personnel would have been also aware of an attack. If some Ministers have 7 to 10 personal security officers – a total 800 personal security would have been aware.
- If the foreign intel went to the Senior DIG Western province then 8000 police officers in the western province would have been aware
- That the Embassies were also in the know by 11th April 2019 was when they had asked if what was sent on the 20th was the ‘same piece of information sent before”.
- The SIS head informed that 340 reports to seek arrest of Zaharan Hashim & other religious extremists had been submitted from 2015 to 2019 (intelligence gathered from Wanathawilluwa weapons cache, damages to Buddhist statues in Mawanella & other intelligence)
- SIS Head also informed that he had repeatedly informed the Ministers in charge of police at the Security Council meetings.
- Former SIS head had in writing dated 7 April 2019 communicated of a possible terror attack to the then Chief of National Intelligence Sisira Mendia – “Information of an alleged plan of attack”. One of the documents had mentioned that Rishard Bathurdeen’s brother had helped Zahran flee to India & former SIS head had stated that the incident would turn into a political issue – which it did.
It has been convenient for all in the know to pass the buck to the SIS Head claiming they did not know – when they did.
While many attempts are being made to single out officers who were made aware of impending attacks, these officers had in fact made the information known to the people who had to give the orders for prevention of such an attack. That orders were not given, when the one’s who had powers to give orders knew of an impending attacks, makes them far more guilty than the officers who knew of it.
To this list of people in the know is a former Minister whose father had been briefed by one of the 15,000 in the know & who advised his son HarinF not to attend church. Is it not unusual that none of the 225 MPs in Parliament who were Catholic attended Mass nor did their families? They have committed a constitutional failure in not fulfilling their duties Article 42 (1) (2) (3)
The President was Maithripala Sirisena
The Prime Minister was Ranil Wickremasinghe & after 19a had entire government under his control (Cabinet & Government)
Minister of Law & Order in charge of Police was Sagala Ratnayake – a close confidante of the PM.
The Commission of Inquiry report states “‘The lax approach of the Prime Minister towards Islam extremism was one of the primary reasons for the failure on the part of the government to take proactive steps towards Islam extremism. This facilitated the build-up of Islam extremism to the point of Easter Sunday attacks.’ – P. 277.
Dr. Muhamad Zufyan Muhamad Zafras was the one who helped Zaharan’s brother Rilwan get treatment for his injury in Colombo after experimenting in Sainamarathu. AG has been instructed to institute criminal action against Dr. Zafras under S.5 of PTA for withholding information.
– working at the National Hospital, Colombo who has helped Zaharan’s brother Rilwan to get admitted to Colombo National Hospital for treatment as a person injured in a gas cylinder blast, hiding the fact that he was injured in a blast while experimenting with explosives. The COI has recommended the AG to consider instituting criminal action against Dr. Zafras under S. 5 of the PTA for withholding information.
Are the one’s in the know, now trying to put wool over our eyes and try their best to cover up their guilt by pointing fingers and crying ‘political conspiracy’ to blame others & hide their own guilt.
Shenali D Waduge
Read more at:
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_20B/Oct20_1603175867CH.php
https://www.themorning.lk/easter-sunday-bombings-trials-several-top-cops-as-prosecution-witnesses/
