[NEWS] Fifteen killed in Sri Lanka in shootout with suspected Islamist militants – Loganspace AI

COLOMBO (Reuters) – The bodies of 15 of us, including six kids, were stumbled on at the place of abode of a fierce overnight gun fight on the east wing of Sri Lanka, a militia spokesman stated on Saturday, six days after suicide bombers killed extra than 250 of us.

The shootout between troops and suspected Islamist militants erupted on Friday evening in Sainthamaruthu in Ampara, to the south of the metropolis of Batticaloa, place of abode of 1 in all the Easter Sunday blasts at three church buildings and four luxurious accommodations.

A police spokesman stated that three suspected suicide bombers were amongst the 15 slow after the shoot out.

Military spokesman Sumith Atapattu stated in a observation that as troops headed toward the protected residence three explosions were triggered and gunfire started.

“Troops retaliated and raided the protected residence the place a substantial cache of explosives had been kept,” he stated in a observation.

GRAPHIC: Sri Lanka bombings –tmsnrt.rs/2Xy02BA

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He stated the militants were suspected participants of the Nationwide Towheed Jama’at (NTJ), which has been blamed for final Sunday’s attacks.

The authorities has stated nine homegrown, successfully-trained suicide bombers utilized the Easter Sunday attacks, eight of whom had been identified. One changed into as soon as a lady.

Police stated on Friday they were attempting to tune down 140 of us they deem have hyperlinks with Islamic Enlighten, which claimed responsibility for the suicide bombings.

Police have detained now not much less than 76 of us, including foreigners from Syria and Egypt, in their investigations to this point.

Islamic Enlighten offered no evidence to again its divulge that it changed into as soon as at the again of the attacks. If real, it’d be one in all the worst attacks utilized by the neighborhood outside Iraq and Syria.

The extremist neighborhood launched a video on Tuesday showing eight men, all however one with their faces lined, standing beneath a dark Islamic Enlighten flag and declaring their loyalty to its leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.