Pakistani foreign minister’s Sri Lanka visit cancelled
May 2, 2019 04:58 pm
The Sri Lanka visit of Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi was canceled, diplomatic sources confirmed on Thursday.
The tour has been canceled due to the security clearance issue in a wake of recently held terror attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter.
It is to be mentioned here that Qureshi was scheduled to visit the state on the invitation of the Sri Lanka government.
On the other hand, Sri Lankan security forces maintained a high level of alert after the Easter bombings, officials said, amid intelligence reports that militants were planning fresh attacks before the start of the holy Islamic month of Ramazan.
Security across Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka remained ramped up, with scores of suspected militants arrested since the April 21 attacks on hotels and churches that killed more than 250 people, including 42 foreign nationals.
“Security will stay tight for several days because military and police are still tracking down suspects,” a senior police intelligence official said.
Another government source told a document has been circulated among key security establishments instructing all police and security forces across the Indian Ocean island nation to remain on high alert because the militants were expected to try a strike before Ramadan.
-Agencies
