The fiery Islamic cleric who allegedly masterminded the Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka has been confirmed dead, the country’s president reported.
President Maithripala Sirisena announced that Zahram Hashim died at the Shangri-La hotel in the country’s capital, Colombo, the BBC reported Friday.
Sirisena identified Hashim as the leader of the attack on the popular tourist hotel. He was joined by another man known as Ilham, the president said.
Hashim, a radical preacher who has used the burning Twin Towers as a backdrop for his hateful online sermons, was named earlier this week as the ringleader behind the coordinated attacks on three churches and four hotels that killed about 253 people.
He headed up the local terror cell National Towheed Jama’ar, the BBC reported.
In the wake of the attacks, video has emerged showing a man believed to be Hashim pledging allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State of Iraq, according to earlier reports.
It was unclear whether Hashim was directly connected to ISIS or simply a local jihadist who pledged allegiance to them.
Mohomed Hashim Madaniya, Hashim’s sister, said Thursday she doesn’t want to have anything to do with her brother and hopes he is dead.
Hashim began as a small-time preacher, but his teachings became more and more popular in some areas, she said.
Many residents of his hometown, the Muslim community of Kattankudy, were reluctant and afraid to speak about him.
https://nypost.com/2019/04/26/alleged-mastermind-behind-sri-lanka-easter-attacks-confirmed-dead/
2019-04-26 13:24:00Z
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