Sri lankan police clamped a fresh curfew on a Colombo neighbourhood on Sunday after tensions flared up again in the area following a clash between two groups over a religious site which left 12 worshippers injured.
Police imposed a curfew again for a second day in the Grandpass area of capital Colombo, a day after a Buddhist mob on Saturday allegedly threw rocks and vandalised a mosque the Grandpass district, prompting authorities to impose a curfew. “The police curfew will be in effect from 6.00 pm Sunday to 7.00 am on Monday,” Police Spokesman SP Buddhika Siriwardena said.
Authorities urged the public to remain calm and avoid any conflicts amid fears of further confrontations. Police Riot Squad and the Special Task Force have been deployed to beef up security in the area. The police this morning lifted the curfew imposed on Saturday night following the attack on the mosque on the Swarna Chaithya Road by an unidentified mob.
The attack injured 12 people including two police officers providing security to the mosque and damaged several nearby buildings. Meanwhile, the US Embassy here expressed concern over the attack and demanded prosecution of perpetrators. “This incident is particularly troubling in light of a number of recent attacks against the Muslim community in Sri lanka. Targeting any place of worship should never be permitted and we urge calm from all sides. We call for prosecution of perpetrators in this attack and an end to religious-based violence. The right of all Sri lankans to practise the religion of their choice should be protected,” it said in a statement.
Early this year, the Sri lankan President had stressed the need for inter religious harmony following a campaign of Muslim hatred carried out by the Buddhist extremist group ‘Bodu Bala Sena’ (BBS).