’We only want local probe with foreign observers’: Catholic Church tells President

The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka, in a fresh letter addressed to President Ranil Wickremesinghe has called for a local probe to clear certain shortcomings that are visible in the previous probes into the Easter Sunday bomb attacks.

The letter signed by several Bishops including Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith who are members of the National Catholic Committee for Justice to Easter Sunday Attack Victims appointed by the Catholic Bishops' Conference has said previous investigations have neglected important issues. Investigations have not been carried out into the person whose IP address had been handed over to the CID by American FBI intelligence member, halting the questioning of IP Bandara who had been identified as Sonic Sonic, failure to identify Abu Hind, failure to carry out investigations to determine the connection which bomber Jamil had with intelligence units and the incident at the Galanigama exit where an explosives laded lorry had been allowed to pass have not been properly probed, the letter said.

"It is clear that the Directorate of Militarily Intelligence and the State Intelligence Service had close relationships with Zahran. There have been attempts to obstruct and sabotage these investigations," the letter added.

The Committee also requested for a probe into what was alleged in the recent Channel 4 video. They said the probe should be monitored by independent foreign observers. 

The letter has been signed by Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, President of Sri Lanka Catholic Bishop's Conference Bishop Harold Anthony Perera, Bishop of Chillaw Valance Mendis, Bishop of Galle Raymond Wickremesinghe, and Auxiliary Bishops J.D. Anthony  Jayakody, Anton Ranjith and Maxwell Silva and several priests.

Meanwhile, Fr. Cyril Gamini Fernando told journalists that the President is yet to respond to the earlier letter by the Sri Lanka Catholic Bishops' Conference. (Yohan Perera)