Incident Summary:

04/21/2019: Two suicide bombers, identified as Zahran Hashim and Ilham Ahmed Ibrahim, detonated explosives at a restaurant at the Shangri-La Hotel on Wellawaya Highway in Colombo, Western, Sri Lanka. This was one of eight coordinated attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday. In addition to eight suicide bombers, at least 258 people, including four United States citizens, were killed and at least 500 others were injured across the blasts. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) claimed responsibility for the incident and stated that Christians and citizens of "coalition countries" were targeted in the attacks. Authorities, however, questioned the veracity of this claim. Jamaat al-Tawhid al-Watania also claimed responsibility for the attacks. Additionally, sources attributed the attacks to National Thowheeth Jama'ath and Jammiyathul Millathu Ibrahim.

GTD ID:
201904210004

When:
2019-04-21

Country:
Sri Lanka

Region:
South Asia

Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:

Western

City:
Colombo

Location Details:
The incident occurred on Wellawaya Highway.

Attack Information
Type of Attack (more) Bombing/Explosion
Successful Attack? (more) Yes
Target Information (more)
Target Type: Business
Name of Entity Shangri-La Hotel
Specific Description Hotel
Nationality of Target Sri Lanka
Target Type: Private Citizens & Property
Name of Entity Not Applicable
Specific Description Civilian
Nationality of Target Multinational
Additional Information
Hostages No
Ransom No
Property Damage Yes
Extent of Property Damage Unknown
Value of Property Damage Unknown
Weapon Information
Type Sub-type
Explosives Suicide (carried bodily by human being)
Weapon Details
Two explosives-laden backpacks containing triacetone triperoxide (TATP) and ball bearings and iron nails as shrapnel were used in the attack.
Additional Information
Suicide Attack?Yes
Part of Multiple Incident?Yes
Criterion 1 (more) Yes
Criterion 2 (more) Yes
Criterion 3 (more) Yes
Doubt Terrorism Proper (more) No
Additional Information Sources also attributed the attack to Jammiyathul Millathu Ibrahim. The victims included civilians from the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, China, the Netherlands, India, Portugal, Japan and Turkey. Casualty numbers conflict across sources. Following GTD protocol, the most recent reliable estimates are reported here. Casualty numbers represent a division of the total number of those killed and wounded across incidents 201904210001, 201904210002, 201904210003, 201904210004, 201904210005, 201904210006 and 201904210007.
Perpetrator Group Information
Group Name Claimed Responsibility
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) (suspected) Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Posted to website, blog, etc.)
Jamaat al-Tawhid al-Watania Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Unknown)
National Thowheeth Jama'ath No
Perpetrator Statistics
Number of Perpetrators 2
Number of Captured Perpetrators 0
Casualty Information
Total Number of Casualties 38 Fatalities / 71 Injured
Total Number of Fatalities 38
Number of U.S. Fatalities 2
Number of Perpetrator Fatalities 2
Total Number of Injured 71
Number of U.S. Injured 0
Number of Perpetrators Injured 0
Sources
"Sri Lanka Attacks: What We Know and Don’t Know," New York Times, April 24, 2019.
"Sri Lankan investigator says no direct IS link in Easter attacks," Xinhua News Agency, July 25, 2019.
"Sri Lanka identifies 9 Easter suicide bombers," The Washington Post, May 2, 2019.