High Court sentences 15 men for involvement in Easter Sunday bombings

CSW cautiously welcomes the sentencing of 15 men to consecutive prison terms ranging from 200 to 260 years in prison for their roles in the 2019 Easter Sunday suicide bombings by the Sri Lankan High Court on 22 September, whilst emphasising that true justice will remain incomplete until outstanding allegations of state intelligence failures and political manipulation are transparently resolved.

Sri Lanka’s three-judge High Court convicted 15 of 24 defendants on an indictment totalling 23,270 charges, including murder and conspiracy to commit terrorism, under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Among those sentenced to life terms was Islamic cleric Naufer Moulavi, identified by prosecutors as the mastermind behind the attacks. Nine other individuals were acquitted.

The coordinated attacks on 21 April 2019 targeted three luxury hotels and three churches, killing at least 267 people and injuring over 500 others during Easter Sunday services.

The verdicts come amid intense public scrutiny and a separate, ongoing investigation into the country’s former intelligence chief, Suresh Sallay, who faces allegations of orchestrating the plot alongside extremist networks to manufacture a security crisis for political gains.

The National Christian Evangelical Alliance Sri Lanka (NCEASL) said to CSW in a statement: ‘The NCEASL welcomes the conclusion of this important case relating to the Easter Sunday attacks. After more than seven years, this is an important step towards justice for the victims, survivors and their families. However, this verdict should not be the end of the search for truth and accountability. Questions remain about whether others were involved in planning, supporting or enabling the attacks. These matters must continue to be investigated in a credible and transparent way.

‘Justice must address the full circumstances surrounding the attacks and hold those responsible accountable, based on evidence and due process. It is also important that no religious community is blamed or stigmatised for the actions of individuals. We continue to stand with the victims, survivors and families in their pursuit of truth, justice and healing.’

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘The conviction of these 15 individuals represents an important step forward in a long-delayed judicial process, and we hope it brings a degree of closure to the families who have spent more than seven years grieving and demanding answers. We remain deeply concerned by persistent and credible allegations that elements of the state may have been complicit in or allowed these attacks to occur. A selective justice that punishes the facilitators while shielding political orchestrators or negligent officials will not help in bringing true peace or reconciliation. We call on the Sri Lankan government to ensure that the separate investigations into state intelligence actors are carried out with absolute transparency, free from political interference. The government must also actively work to bridge the religious divides worsened by this terrible tragedy and protect the right to freedom of religion or belief for all citizens.’