President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that credible threats had been identified in Arugam Bay last year, which the National Security Council immediately thwarted.
Addressing Parliament today, the President said that at the time when security concerns were raised, officials — including himself, worked tirelessly to ensure national security.
“The National Security Council was convened twice, at 1 am and 7 am. It was convened through Zoom. I was in Dambulla, when we received all the information. We were able to prevent it,” Dissanayake said.
Dismissing criticisms on how the matter was handled, the President said “There truly was evidence to point to an incident in Arugambay. It was reported that there was a plan. Our Security Council was able to completely dismantle the plan, which must be commended.”
Vowing to protect all visitors to the island, the President asserted that the government does not discriminate. “We don’t care what nationality a tourist is. Or what that person is. If a tourist comes to Sri Lanka, we will protect that tourist,” he said.
He then criticized the opposition for their comments on the issue. “I don’t know what this opposition is doing. We want every tourist’s security,” the President said.
The President noted the government is paying special attention to sabotage attempts targeting the tourism sector, which he suggested are intended “to make the government uncomfortable.”
“There is a risk of targeting tourism zones to create certain incidents. They have been reported to intelligence agencies. They are completely thwarted,” the President said adding that those responsible will be brought to face the law.
President Dissanayake also stressed that he has complete faith in the country’s defence mechanism. (Newswire)