Colombo, Sri Lanka

Survivors of last year's devastating Islamist suicide bombings in Sri Lanka held a private anniversary service Tuesday because of a coronavirus lockdown as the nation paid tribute with a two-minute silence.

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The pandemic forced the Roman Catholic leadership to call off elaborate services to honour the 279 people killed at hotels and churches in the Easter Sunday attacks.

Sri Lanka

Instead, churches across the country rang their bells for five minutes.

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This was followed by two minutes of silence from 8:45 am, the moment the bombers struck. Even television channels went silent during the tribute.

Some survivors attended a closed service at St. Sebastian's church just outside Colombo, which was hit by a bomb.

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At St. Anthony's church in the capital, residents prayed outside and lit candles near a memorial for the 56 people who perished inside.

On April 21 last year, seven followers of a local Muslim radical group went into three churches and three luxury hotels as services and morning buffets were being held and set off explosive vests.

The dead included 45 foreigners. Nearly 600 people survived with serious injuries.

"We honour especially all those, who lost their loved ones and those who were injured, for their spirit of magnanimity in not reacting in anger and hatred," said Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, Sri Lanka's Catholic leader in an anniversary message.

Ranjith thanked minority Catholics for not retaliating against Muslims.

However, inter-communal riots did erupt three weeks after the attacks. One man was killed and hundreds of homes and vehicles were damaged.

The government used emergency powers to prevent a spread of violence.

The extremist National Thowheeth Jama'ath (NTJ), that had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State militant group, was held responsible for the bombings.