3 arrested in Sri Lanka over threats to Israelis; Chabad House named as potential target

One of the terror suspects is reportedly based in Iraq; intelligence said to have been provided from India; police spokesman says security increased in Arugam Bay surf resort area

A police commando stands guard in front of a restaurant in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Wasantha Chandrapala)
A police commando stands guard in front of a restaurant in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka, Oct. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Wasantha Chandrapala)

Three people have been arrested in Sri Lanka amid terror threats against Israelis in the Arugam Bay area and other beaches in the island’s south and west, a government minister said Thursday.

Minister of Public Security and Foreign Affairs Vijitha Herath said the suspects had been taken into custody and were being interrogated.

He declined to give further details, saying that would hamper the investigation.

Sri Lanka’s Daily Mirror, citing police sources, said that one of the Sri Lankan nationals arrested by the Terrorism Investigation Division was based in Iraq.

It said details on the suspects had been supplied by the intelligence service in neighboring India.

The arrests came a day after the National Security Council called on Israelis to leave the popular tourist area and surfing resorts immediately, citing terrorism threats.

Illustrative: Spectators watch a surfing competition at Arugam Bay in the east of Sri Lanka on September 27, 2020. (ISHARA S. KODIKARA / AFP)

“Those leaving these areas are advised to leave the country or at least to the capital Colombo, where there is a high presence of local security forces,” said the NSC.

The warning said Israelis should postpone travel to the rest of the country, and were also urged to hide signs that indicate they are Israelis and avoid gathering in large numbers.

Israel said it was in close contact with Sri Lankan authorities.

Israeli security sources said Thursday that the warning remained in force even after the arrests.

In the wake of the warning, Sri Lanka said it had increased security at the Chabad House Jewish community center in Arugam Bay.

“The information was that a place called ‘Chabad House’ run by Israelis could be a target and we have taken measures to strengthen security,” said police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa.

He said there had recently been tensions between Jewish tourists visiting Chabad House and the bay’s Muslim-majority population.

The army and the navy along with police commandos were deployed in the area to step up patrols and man roadblocks, he said.

Herath said the information received did not include specifics but warned than an “attempt will be made to create disturbances” targeting places where Israelis conduct religious gatherings.

Prior to the Israeli warning, the US Embassy in Sri Lanka said it had “received credible information warning of an attack targeting popular tourist locations” in eastern Arugam Bay.

Britain and Canada shared the US warning on their own websites, while the Russian embassy advised its nationals to avoid crowded places while visiting the island.

A surfer attends a surfing competition at Arugam Bay in the east of Sri Lanka on September 27, 2020. (Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA / AFP)

The warnings came after social media posts called for a boycott of Israeli-owned businesses in the area. Protests by local Muslim groups against Israel’s war against terror groups Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon have drawn support from the wider community in the predominantly Buddhist South Asian nation.

The war broke out following Hamas’s October 7 onslaught last year, which saw terrorists kill some 1,200 people in Israel and kidnap 251. The Lebanese terror group Hezbollah has been firing at Israel on a near-daily basis since the following day. Israel has also been attacked by Iran-backed militia in Iraq, Yemen and Syria.

Israelis accounted for less than 1.5 percent of the 1.5 million tourists who visited Sri Lanka in the first nine months of this year — or around 20,000 people altogether.

But Arugam Bay, a hotspot for surfing around 400 kilometers (250 miles) east of Colombo by road, is a popular destination for Israeli tourists.

Sri Lankan Muslims protest Israeli airstrikes in Gaza in the immediate wake of Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack — Colombo, Sri Lanka, October 13, 2023. (AP Photo)

There have been no terror attacks in Sri Lanka since the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings that killed 279 people, including 45 foreign nationals.

The coordinated attack against three luxury hotels and three churches was blamed on a local jihadist group that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group.

Tourism numbers fell sharply afterwards, and took another hit during a 2022 economic meltdown that precipitated widespread civil unrest.

But foreign visitor numbers have picked up after an International Monetary Fund bailout last year helped stabilize the economy.

Israel has issued travel warnings to several countries amid rising antisemitism and a surge in alerts of potential terror attacks targeting Jews and Israelis since the October 7 massacre.

Seven people were killed by gunmen at Nariman Chabad House in neighboring India in 2008, part of several attacks on Mumbai sites over four days by an Islamist Pakistani group. In total, 166 people were killed and hundreds injured.

Lazar Berman contributed to this report.

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