Sri Lanka blasts live updates: Government declares emergency from midnight

"It includes, eight from India, six from the United Kingdom, two each from China, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, one each from France, Japan, Bangladesh, the Netherlands and Spain while two others holding dual nationalities of the US and the UK and two holding dual citizenship of Australia and Sri Lanka," the statement said

Sri Lankans scoured hospitals and morgues for missing loved ones on Monday, a day after suicide bomb attacks on churches holding Easter services and luxury hotels killed 290 people and wounded about 500. Outside the national hospital in Colombo, a woman named Rameshwary said she was searching for a 17-year-old friend who attended morning mass at St. Anthony's Shrine, one of three Catholic churches hit in the coordinated attack. "We kept calling her after we heard of the incident, but there was no response," she said, showing a photograph of the missing girl on her mobile phone. Read more

An Indian national, who escaped the worst terror attack in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, said it was a "horrific sight" to see huge chunks of glass on the bodies of fellow guests and white aprons of chefs drenched in blood after a suicide bomber struck a luxury hotel in Colombo. Sri Lankan authorities said 290 people were killed and over 500 others injured when suicide bombers attacked three churches and luxury hotels in the country. Read more

Interpol said it was deploying an Incident Response Team (IRT) at the request of the Sri Lanka authorities, including specialists with expertise in crime scene examination, explosives, counter-terror and victim identification. "If required, additional expertise in digital forensics, biometrics, as well as photo and video analysis will also be added to the team on the ground," it added. Read more

Denmark's richest man Anders Holch Povlsen and his wife lost three of their four children in the Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka, a spokesman for Povlsen's fashion firm said on Monday. The spokesman declined to give any further details but Danish media said the family had been on holiday in Sri Lanka. Povlsen is the owner of fashion firm Bestseller, which includes brands like Vero Moda and Jack & Jones, and is the majority stakeholder in online retailer Asos while also holding a big stake in Zalando. Read more