Former Sri Lanka intelligence chief arrested over 2019 Easter Sunday bombings

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lankan authorities have arrested the country's former intelligence chief, retired Major General Suresh Sallay, in connection with the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings that killed 279 people.

A police spokesperson said Sallay was detained in Colombo for questioning under the nation’s Prevention of Terrorism Act. While specific charges have not yet been announced, officials said Sallay will be produced before a court.

Sallay held a senior military position at the time of the attacks and was later appointed head of the State Intelligence Service in late 2019 by former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Sallay currently has no legal representation and could not be reached for comment.

The former intelligence official has previously denied allegations that he maintained links to the bombers or allowed the attacks to occur to influence the 2019 presidential election in Rajapaksa's favor.

The arrest follows a pledge by current President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who was elected in 2024, to prosecute those responsible for the massacre. The coordinated April 21, 2019, suicide bombings targeted three churches and three hotels, wounding approximately 500 people.

The arrest of former intelligence chief Suresh Sallay represents more than a legal milestone; it is a seismic shift in the Sri Lankan political landscape. By moving against a high-ranking member of the security apparatus, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is signaling an aggressive pivot toward executive accountability and a fulfillment of his mandate to deliver justice for the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings.

The central allegation strikes at the very core of state integrity: that a top security official may have been complicit in a mass-casualty terror attack to manufacture a national security crisis, thereby clearing a path for a presidential candidate to win on a hardline "law and order" platform. If proven, these charges would expose the profound depth of "deep state" interference in Sri Lanka’s democratic institutions and the extent of systemic rot within the previous administration.

This case serves as a critical litmus test for the independence of the Sri Lankan judiciary and the Dissanayake government’s resolve to confront the country’s legacy of impunity. Regardless of the legal outcome, the proceedings are guaranteed to heighten political volatility, potentially triggering a fracture between the civilian leadership and the military-political elite aligned with the Rajapaksa era.

International observers and human rights organizations are monitoring the situation closely. How Colombo handles this high-stakes prosecution will likely define Sri Lanka’s standing with global partners and determine its ability to restore public trust in the rule of law.