Sri Lanka remained under a state of emergency Wednesday after ethnic Buddhist mob attacks against members of the minority Muslim population.
President Maithripala Sirisena imposed the decree Tuesday, a day after Sinhalese mobs attacked several mosques, plus dozens of Muslim-owned shops and businesses in the central district of Kandy. The body of a young Muslim man who was trapped when fire burned down his parents's small shop was found by firefighters Tuesday.
The unrest began on Saturday, when a Sinhalese truck driver was injured after he reportedly clashed with a group of Muslim youths in Kandy. The driver died of his injuries the next day.
Sri Lanka remains deeply divided along religious and ethnic lines since the end of the 36-year civil war in 2009, when government forces crushed an insurgency by the ethnic Tamil minority seeking an independent homeland. Hardline Sinhalese Buddhist nationalists have accused Muslims of attacking sacred Buddhist sites and forcing people to convert.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe condemned the "racist and violent acts" on Twitter Tuesday. "As a nation that endured a brutal war we are all aware of the values of peace, respect, unity & freedom," he wrote.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombo urged the government to act quickly against the perpetrators, protect the rights of religious minorities and lift the state of emergency as soon as possible.
斯里兰卡佛教徒对穆斯林发动袭击，斯里兰卡星期三继续处于紧急状态。
斯里兰卡总统西里塞纳星期二签署了紧急状态令。僧伽罗人暴民星期一在康堤中部地区袭击了一些清真寺和几十个穆斯林人开的商店和公司。一个年轻穆斯林男子被困在父母被焚毁的小店铺里，消防队员星期二发现了他的尸体。
这一轮动乱是上周六开始的。当时，一个僧伽罗人卡车司机据报在康堤与一群年轻穆斯林发生冲突后受伤，次日不治身亡。
斯里兰卡持续36年的内战2009年结束以来，一直存在宗教和民族矛盾。强硬派僧伽罗民族主义者指责穆斯林袭击佛教圣地，强迫人们皈依伊斯兰教。
斯里兰卡总理拉尼尔·维克拉马辛哈星期二在推特上谴责“种族和暴力行为”。他写道：“对于一个经历过残酷战争的国家来说，我们都知道和平、尊重、团结和自由的价值观念。”
美国驻科伦坡大使馆敦促斯里兰卡政府迅速对肇事者采取行动，保护宗教少数群体，尽快取消紧急状态。