-By LeN Special Investigations Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -12.April.2025, 9.55 PM) In a revelation that could rewrite the history of one of Sri Lanka’s darkest days, two independent intelligence reviews have reversed the long-standing narrative that the Easter Sunday terrorist bombings of 2019 were the work of an isolated Islamic extremist group. Instead, these new reports suggest that the attacks were state-engineered, strategically orchestrated, and politically motivated, involving operatives from Sri Lanka’s Military Intelligence and allegedly overseen by senior figures within the Rajapaksa family.
The coordinated attacks, which killed 269 people and injured more than 500 in Colombo, Negombo, and Batticaloa, shocked the nation and the world. For years, the blame was placed on a fringe Islamic cell led by Zahran Hashim. But now, mounting evidence suggests that these men were manipulated assets, and the real architects were seated far from the chaos — in the boardrooms of power.
Zahran Hashim, the public face of the bombings, was long branded as an Islamic extremist inspired by global jihadist groups like ISIS. However, declassified documents and recently surfaced recordings indicate that neither he nor his followers had any verifiable links to transnational terrorist organizations.
“There was no operational connection to ISIS, al-Qaeda, or any other known Islamic terror group,” states a forensic report reviewed by the Sunday Chronicle. “The so-called ‘ISIS claim of responsibility’ was opportunistic propaganda — a classic case of narrative hijacking.”
In fact, the group Zahran led was fractured, small, and lacked logistical capacity. What they did have, however, was support — from a clandestine network within Sri Lanka’s Military Intelligence, which reportedly supplied funding, safe houses, transport, and critical surveillance data.
Why would anyone in the Sri Lankan state sponsor such carnage? Political motive.
By early 2019, the Rajapaksa family — once omnipresent in Sri Lankan politics — was under siege. The Good Governance regime led by then-President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had opened probes into war crimes, state corruption, and the Rajapaksas’ abuse of military power during and after the civil war. These inquiries were closing in.
And then, the bombings happened.
Within months, public fear, nationalist outrage, and security chaos brought Gotabaya Rajapaksa back into the political limelight as the saviour figure promising “security and stability.” He swept the November 2019 presidential elections. Investigations into his family? Disappeared.
Coincidence? Not according to the growing body of evidence.
The explosive intelligence reviews point to the involvement of a rogue element within the State Intelligence Service (SIS) — not the entirety of Sri Lanka’s intelligence apparatus, but a militarized faction, which one report chillingly refers to as the “Intelligence Cult.”
At the center of this cult-like unit was Major General Suresh Saleh, the former Director General of SIS. According to investigators, Saleh maintained direct links to several of the suicide bombers, including phone records, intercepted communications, and meetings documented in security logs.
“These weren’t just monitored suspects,” one source within the new intelligence reform task force reveals. “They were being cultivated.”
Saleh, who was removed from his post by the incoming NPP government in 2024, has so far refused public comment. A subpoena for his testimony is reportedly being prepared by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Terrorism and National Security.
A less explored, but equally disturbing, facet of this shadow network is the recruitment mechanism. The attackers were not hardened terrorists — many were low-level criminals, arrested for petty thefts, minor violence, or illicit weapons possession.
It was Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan, alias “Pillayan” — former Eastern Province Chief Minister and a one-time paramilitary leader — who is said to have handpicked the attackers. Pillayan, recently released from prison on charges related to the Joseph Pararajasingham assassination, allegedly acted as a recruitment facilitator, introducing these men to a Military Intelligence officer known as “Khalil.”
This name appears repeatedly in call logs, WhatsApp audio dumps, and intercepted communication records — including over 300 hours of conversations between “Khalil” and the attackers during the planning stages. One decrypted audio clip reportedly captures Khalil assuring an attacker, “You are not alone — this is a national mission.”
Beyond military operatives, evidence trails also lead to prominent political figures. Among them, Dilith Jayaweera, a businessman-turned-MP with known ties to Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and Ali Sabry, then a close political ally, now a former Foreign Minister.
While no charges have been filed, a trove of emails and meeting memos obtained by whistleblowers suggests that both men were aware of “a planned destabilizing event” prior to April 2019. Whether they were passive onlookers or active enablers remains a question for investigators.
“Their names appear in the same breath as security briefings and policy coordination sessions linked to post-attack response,” one retired intelligence official says. “Either they knew, or they should have known.”
The current NPP government has not yet called either individual for questioning, citing “ongoing evidence analysis.” However, civil society watchdogs are demanding public accountability and parliamentary inquiry.
In the days following the Easter bombings, President Sirisena claimed he was “kept in the dark.” But new reports suggest otherwise.
Several intelligence agencies, including Indian RAW, had shared precise intelligence about a possible Easter Sunday attack — including target locations, suspects’ names, and modus operandi. These were passed to Sri Lankan authorities weeks in advance.
Yet, no action was taken.
The now-controversial Army Commander in 2019, Lt. General Mahesh Senanayake, has faced increasing pressure to explain the intelligence failure. Some believe the real question isn’t why he failed — but whether he was told to stand down.
According to an insider in the National Security Council at the time, “There was deliberate paralysis. The machinery was working. But the hand on the switch wasn’t moving.”
Among those who aggressively shaped the early post-attack narrative was Professor Rohan Gunaratna, a self-styled counterterrorism expert whose profile soared in the weeks following the bombings.
Gunaratna was a consistent voice framing the attackers as part of a global jihadist network — a claim now debunked. Critics argue that he helped cement a false narrative and legitimized the Rajapaksa’s security-state comeback.
Now, many are calling for Gunaratna to be interrogated, both for the source of his claims and the role he played in shaping policy and public opinion based on a false pretext.
“He was not merely mistaken. He was instrumental in myth-making,” said Dr. Kumudini Samarakoon, a sociopolitical analyst. “And myth-making was the oxygen the Rajapaksas needed to return.”
The rise of the NPP government has emboldened the call for justice. Since coming to power in 2024, the NPP has reopened the Easter Sunday investigation and initiated intelligence sector reforms. A newly constituted Independent Terrorism Review Commission (ITRC) has already subpoenaed over 70 individuals and obtained access to previously classified files.
Human rights groups and church leaders — long stonewalled by former regimes — are now being given seats at the table. The Catholic Church, led by Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, has reiterated its demand for a full truth and reconciliation process.
“What we need is not only justice,” Cardinal Ranjith stated last month. “We need the complete truth. Not just for the victims — but for the soul of this country.”
The Easter Sunday attacks were more than just an act of terror. They were a pivot point in Sri Lanka’s democratic history — a moment when chaos became the ladder.
If these emerging findings hold true, then the nation must confront a horrifying reality: that its own leaders weaponized fear, blood, and religion for power.
The Rajapaksas returned on the wings of death. And now, the dead demand answers.
-By LeN Special Investigations Correspondent
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by (2025-04-12 16:19:40)
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