Sri Lanka terror attacks: President Sirisena asks police chief, Defence Secretary to quit

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Wednesday asked the Defence Secretary and police chief Pujith Jayasundara to quit after their failure to prevent the deadly suicide blasts despite having the prior intelligence inputs about the attacks, reports Reuters.

The development comes a day after Sirisena said that he would make changes in top positions of the country's defence forces within the next 24 hours.

Addressing the nation for the first time since the Easter Sunday attacks that killed 359 people and wounded more than 500 others, Sri Lankan President expressed his deepest condolences to all those who had lost their lives during the attacks.

"I am hoping to make changes in top positions in the security establishment within the next 24 hours," he said.

Police Chief is facing a lot of criticism for failing to prevent the worst terror attack in the country's history despite having prior intelligence about it. The pressure was being mounted on him to tender his resignation.

Meanwhile, Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara also said on Wednesday morning that 18 suspects were arrested overnight, raising the total detained to 58. The Prime Minister warned on Tuesday that several suspects armed with explosives were still at large, reported news agency AP.

The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the devastating Easter blasts in Sri Lanka and identified the seven suicide bombers who were involved in the attacks.

On the other hand, Sri Lanka has initiated a plan to ban the burqa as interrogation of suspects and other evidence are pointing to the involvement of a large number of women in the blasts.

The government is planning to implement the move in consultation with the mosque authorities, the Daily Mirror reported quoting sources.