[TamilNet, Sunday, 06 April 2008, 03:14 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s Minister of Highways & Road Development, Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, was killed in a bomb blast at the public playground in Weliweraya, located in the Gampaha district of Western Province, around 8:00 a.m. Sunday. 12 persons were killed and more than 50 wounded in the attack that took place while the minister was waving a flag to start off a marathon race in connection with the Tamil and Sinhala New Year celebrations.
An athletic coach attached to the sports ministry, Luxman de Alvis, former Sri Lankan cyclist champion Karunaratne, and a police officer were also killed in the blast, according to initial reports.Times Online: The bombing killed 11 others, including K.A. Karunaratne, a former Sri Lankan Olympic marathon runner, and Lakshman de Alwis, a national athletics coach, and injured at least 90 others.
Filed under: Tamil Dispatch , Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, sri lanka
