- Title: SRI LANKA: Explosion in Sri Lanka injures 13.
- Date: 3rd October 2009
- Summary: INJURED CHILDREN (SOUNDBITE) (Sinhala) NETHMI AMASHA SAYING: "I came towards the van to go to school. I heard a loud noise. That is all I remember." (SOUNDBITE) (Sinhala) SANDRIST SAYING: "I was also about to get into the van when there was a loud noise."
- Embargoed: 18th October 2009 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Sri Lanka
- Country: Sri Lanka
- Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement
- Reuters ID: LVA1ROLLSXIYQIIHHQ03GVXN4XAX
- Story Text: An explosion in northwestern Sri Lanka wounded 13 people but does not appear to be caused by remnants of the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels.
At least 13 people, including schoolchildren, were injured in an explosion in northwestern Sri Lanka on Friday (October 2).
The explosion happened inside a van and appeared to be part of a personal feud and not caused by remnants of the defeated Tamil Tiger rebels, authorities said.
The blast occurred in the northwestern town of Kurunegala and was the first since the separatist rebels were crushed in May.
According to military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara the van exploded when the driver tried to start it, injuring twelve schoolchildren and the driver.
The spokesman said the incident was the result of a personal dispute.
Students preparing to board the van said there was a sudden loud noise.
"I came towards the van to go to school. I heard a loud noise. That is all I remember," said Nethmi Amasha.
"I was also about to get into the van when there was a loud noise," added Sandrist.
Suicide blasts and bus bombs were hallmarks of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whom the military defeated in May and ended a 25-year civil war.
Since then, soldiers and police have been rounding up a handful of rebels still in hiding and seizing massive caches of weapons.
Northern Sri Lanka, where the rebels tried to establish their own state, is awash in hidden caches of guns and military hardware.
The Indian Ocean island has had three bloody insurrections since 1971, and the ongoing bloodshed has often provided cover for personal or business disputes to be settled violently.
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