Sri Lankan court to deliver verdict on deadly Easter bombings

Co-ordinated suicide attacks killed 270 people across several churches and hotels in Colombo in 2019. For years, families of the victims have held regular demonstrations demanding accountability after the attacks A Sri Lankan court is set to rule on Naufer Moulavi, who is accused of masterminding the Easter bomb attacks that killed 270 people and injured more than 500 in 2019. Twenty-three others will also receive verdicts for their involvement in planning and carrying out the co-ordinated suicide bombings. The attacks on several locations including several churches holding Easter mass and three luxury hotels was the deadliest attack Sri Lanka had seen since the end of its civil war in 2009. The associates and relatives of nine suicide bombers are among those facing more than 23,000 charges, including murder, conspiracy to commit terrorism and possessing firearms.

The prosecution had named Moulavi as the main organiser of the attacks, and had submitted what they said was a voluntary confession to the court where he had admitted his role. The court accepted the confession. However, Moulavi later told the three-judge bench hearing the case that he was not shown what he was signing and rejected the allegations against him. There were also 2,076 pieces of evidence, including explosives, swords and firearms. In the wake of the attacks, Sri Lankan authorities pointed to