Sri Lanka’s Suresh Sallay Complicit in Easter Bombing: report
Sri Lanka’s current intelligence chief, Suresh Sallay, was complicit in the 2019 Easter Sunday bombing that killed 279 people, including 45 foreign nationals, a British newspaper claimed Monday. Major General Suresh Sallay hatched the plot while working for the directorate of military intelligence and with the objective of creating instability to clear the way for Rajapakses to return to power.
The Times newspaper said sallay was involved with the Easter Sunday bombers to destabilise the country.
The paper was quoting from an interview with an insider to be aired on Tuesday on British’s Channel 4, in which an interviewee claims the deadly bombing were orchestrated by Sri Lanka’s military intelligence.
Sallay was promoted as head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) no sooner Gotabaya Rajapakse came to power in 2019. He was given a one-year service extension by President Ranil Wickramesinghe recently.
Islamic extremists set off suicide bombing at two Catholic Churches, a Christian church and three hotels. The attacks were later claimed by the Islamic State group.
The insider identified as Azad Maulana, a former top aide of chief minister Sivanestathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan, had spoken of Sallay planning the attacks for about three years.
“ Suresh Sallay came to me and told me the Rajapakses need an unsafe situation in Sri Lanka, that’s the only way for Gotabaya become president,” Maulana was quoted as saying.“ The attack was not a plan made in just one or two days, the plan was two, three years in the making.” There was no immediate response from the Sri Lankan government or the SIS. Maulana fled Sri Lanka last year fearing for his life and has sought asylum in Europe.
Sri Lanka authorities failed to act on warning issued by an intelligence agency in neighbouring India 17 days before the coordinated suicide bombings, according to several investigations into the attacks.
Accusations of the involvement of Sri Lanka intelligence operatives, has already been reported to courts. However, this is the first time Sallay is directly accused of plotting the attacks.
Rajapakse went against tradition by appointing Sally to head the SIS, a position previously held by a senior police officer.
Rajapakse was outsed from power in 2022, initially fleeing to Singapore and Thailand, but has since returned under tight security. Sallay remains the head of the intelligence service.
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