5 passengers killed, over 45 injured in Lanka bus blast

Colombo, Jan 5 (UNI) At least five passengers were killed and over 45 wounded when a bomb exploded in a bus at Nittambuwa in the Gampaha district in Sri Lanka this evening.

According to police and military sources, the explosion occurred around 1810 hrs in the bus travelling going from Nittambuwa to Kiriulla on the Colombo-Kandy highway in the Gampaha district.

''At least five passengers have been killed and over 45 wounded, 10 of them reported to be seriously wounded,'' Military Spokesman Brig Prasad Samarasinghe told UNI.

According to the Military spokesman, the wounded passengers had been rushed to the nearby Wathupitiwala government hospital.

"Looking at the magnitude and the pattern of the explosion, we suspect it is a work by the LTTE," Brig Samarasinghe said adding that Nittambuwa Police was conducting further investigation.

UNI