'Where is God?': Sri Lankans stunned after deadly blasts

COLOMBO: The death toll from bomb blasts that ripped through churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka rose dramatically on Monday to 290 — including dozens of foreigners — as police over the country's worst attacks for more than a decade.
More than 500 people were injured in the Easter Sunday assault that saw suicide bombers hit three high-end hotels popular with foreign tourists and three churches, unleashing carnage in Colombo and beyond.
Live updates: Sri Lanka bombings
Two additional blasts were triggered as security forces carried out raids searching for suspects.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but police said on Monday 24 people had been arrested. The government is wary of stirring ethnic tensions, and the country remained on edge as a home-made bomb was defused at Colombo airport late Sunday and massive security deployed.

A nationwide curfew imposed shortly after the blasts was lifted early Monday, but the government has ordered a two-day holiday and schools and the Colombo stock exchange were closed. Still, a steady stream of people and vehicles were seen on the streets of the capital and Negombo.
The attacks were the worst ever carried out against Sri Lanka's small Christian minority, who make up just seven percent of the 21 million population.
'Where is God?'
As Shantha Prasad carried children wounded in Sri Lanka's deadly attacks into a Colombo hospital, memories of the country's deadly civil war flooded back.
"I carried about eight wounded children yesterday," he told AFP on Monday, a day after a string of blasts hit hotels and churches, killing nearly 300 people.
"There were two girls aged six and eight, the same age as my daughters," said Prasad, who helps carry stretchers into the hospital's triage area and wards.
"Their clothes were torn and drenched in blood. It is unbearable to see this kind of violence again."
For many Sri Lankans, Sunday's attacks against churches and high-end hotels brought back painful memories of a conflict that lasted three decades and killed as many as 100,000 people.
During those years, bomb attacks were a regular occurrence, and left many Sri Lankans on edge in the streets and on public transport.
In the capital, street sweeper Malathi Wickrama said on Monday he was now nervous doing his job.
"Now we are afraid to even touch black plastic bags with garbage," he said.
"The string of blasts on Sunday brings back memories of the time when we were afraid to go in buses or trains because of parcel bombs."
With the lifting of a nationwide curfew early Monday morning, people began to emerge into Colombo's streets, where security was heavy.
Schools and the stock exchange are closed, but some shops opened their doors and public transport was functioning.
Imtiaz Ali, a tuk-tuk driver, was looking for customers in the capital, but said his family was in mourning over the death of his nephew in the blast that hit the Cinnamon Grand hotel.
"The boy was just 23. He was a salesman at Cinnamon Grand hotel and he was to be married next week," Ali told AFP.
"We had made all the plans to hold the wedding at home, but today it's a funeral house."
When Ali stopped at a petrol station to get a back-up container of fuel, the attendant said police had banned the sale of petrol and diesel in cans and bottles for fear they could be used to improvise bombs.
Elsewhere in the city, some residents were making their way into work, determined to maintain a semblance of normality despite the tragedy.
"We are resilient people," said Nuwan Samarweera, a 50-year-old office worker.
"We have seen so much violence during the civil war. For the outside world it may be big, but for us life goes on," he added.
"We have to gather ourselves and move on."
North of Colombo, people gathered at the St Sebastian's church to pay their respects at a site where dozens of people were killed as they attended Easter prayers.
A mother and son poured tea for security forces in a show of support, as cleaners wearing face masks cleared shattered glass and splintered wood inside the church.
Buddhist monks joined priests, nuns and ordinary people arriving to offer condolences to the victims.
"I woke up this morning and thought 'what can I do to help?'" said Churchill Karunaratne, 52, weeping as he laid flowers outside the church.
He had rushed to the church after the blast a day earlier hoping to help and found scenes of horror.
"I came after the blast and saw dead bodies everywhere," said Karunaratne, a father-of-three.
"My kids have seen it all on the TV and now they are very scared about going to church," he added.
"They are asking many questions such as 'where is God?'"
In Video:Colombo terror strike: 1 Indian woman among 207 killed; 7 arrestedMaking sense of 2019 #ElectionswithtimesView Full Coverage