Two suspects have been arrested on suspicion over the alleged threats to Israeli tourists in the Arugam Bay area in Sri Lanka, the Police said.
According to the Police Media Unit, the suspects were arrested by officials from the Terrorism Investigations Division (TID).
The arrests come in the backdrop of the US Embassy in Sri Lanka issuing a travel advisory to its citizens, stating that it has received credible information warning of an attack targeting popular tourist locations in the Arugam Bay area.
Soon after, Police Spokesman Nihal Thalduwa clarified that the surge in Israeli tourists and the occupation of a building in the Arugam Bay area may have prompted the US Embassy in Colombo to issue an advisory.
“Due to their interest in surfing a lot of Israeli tourists have visited Arugam Bay. As the area is currently highly populated with Israeli tourists, we had received information in the recent past on possible threats to them,” DIG Thalduwa said.
He further confirmed that special security measures are currently in place in Arugam Bay, with the involvement of the Police, Special Task Force (STF), Navy, Army, and State Intelligence Services (SIS).
Following the travel advisory issued by the US yesterday, several more countries, including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, and Russia, also updated their travel advisory related to Sri Lanka.
The National Security Council (NSC) of Israel had also called on Israelis to leave Sri Lanka’s Arugam Bay area and other beaches in the island’s south and west immediately, citing terrorism threats. (Newswire)