Sri Lanka Police Hold 19 Suspects in Suicide Bombing
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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Police detained 19 men Thursday in a suicide bombing that killed 23 people, and Sri Lanka extended nationwide emergency rule for a month and placed more soldiers at checkpoints in its jittery capital.
The bomber with explosives strapped to his body chose Sri Lanka’s first War Heroes’ Day to strike, killing himself, Industrial Development Minister C. V. Gooneratne, the minister’s wife and 20 others Wednesday in Ratmalana.
No one has claimed responsibility, but the government blamed the bombing on separatist rebels fighting for a homeland for the Tamil minority. Mobs on Wednesday threw stones at Tamil-owned shops in Ratmalana.
Police detained 19 men as suspected accomplices.
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