Mosques flew white flags and posted banners with messages of condolence for the victims of the bombings, in which more than 350 were killed.
Muslims at the Kollupitiya Jumma Mosque in the city of Negombo put up a banner offering their sympathies, condolences and prayers for the families affected by the Easter attacks.
“We don’t know who is behind these attacks, and we condemn them with all our hearts, but many people are saying they were the work of Muslims, so we don’t know what could happen next,” said Mohammad Jinnah, a jeweler and member of the interfaith harmony committee at the Grand Mosque in South Negombo, 20 miles from the capital. “This used to be such a peaceful place, but now everything has turned upside down.
The fear, leaders said, is not so much of attacks by Christians but from others who might take advantage of the turmoil to cause trouble. In addition, Muslim communities are now being searched by intelligence police with newly expanded powers to conduct raids and make arrests, adding to a general sense of unease.
Relations between minority Muslims and majority ethnic Sinhalese Buddhists, the nation’s dominant group, have been marked by outward peace but simmering tensions for decades, leading to two violent riots, in 2014 and last year. One source of animosity is the noticeable surge in the number of mosques, some of which have been described as preaching a strict brand of Sunni Islam that was once rare in this relaxed tropical society.
Later, though, mosque officials said they were politely rebuffed when they made further overtures to local Christians and were urged by church officials to stay at home and avoid any problems. “We condemn the attacks 100 percent, 1,000 percent. We put out white flags to show how we felt, and yet they have brought a black name to Muslims,” Ifam said. “This is the first time world terrorism has come to Sri Lanka, and we demand that government take action against the Thowheed very soon. They must stop it now.”
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