Politicians have admitted a massive intelligence failure and has issued an apology to the victims after the country's military intelligence were given key intel about the planned attacks.
This information was not passed on to the Sri Lankan government just days before the attacks.
Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Sri Lankan prime minister, acknowledged that “information was there” about possible attacks.
He added that “we must also look into why adequate precautions were not taken”.
It emerged Sri Lanka's police chief Pujuth Jayasundara warned cops of suicide bombers planning to hit "prominent churches" 10 days before yesterday's attack.
However, cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said today that the sick terrorists were helped by an "international network."
"We do not believe these attacks were carried out by a group of people who were confined to this country," Senaratne said.
"There was an international network without which these attacks could not have succeeded."
A US official has told CNN that the sick suicide bombers were inspired by ISIS
Supporters of the depraved death cult have been celebrating the attacks online.
Hours after the first six were reported, there were two more fatal blasts in the city,
An explosion at a hotel in Dehiwala killed two,and another in a flats in Dematagoda reportedly killed three police officers.
All of the six explosions this morning - as Christians attended Easter mass - were carried out by suicide bombers, according to initial investigations.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- At least 290 people killed and 500 injured after seven suicide bombers attacked three churches, four hotels and a block of flats in Colombo
- Eight Brits, 'several' Americans, one Dutch, one Chinese, two Turkish, three Danes and one Portuguese national have been confirmed dead
- Social media ban in place to prevent spread of misinformation, and night curfew imposed
- 13 terrorists arrested, says defence minister Ruwan Wijewardene
- Sri Lankan government names local Islamic terror group National Thowheeth Jama'ath as being responsible for the attacks
- Government official says terror group was helped by an “international network” of Jihadis
- A US official told CNN said that the sick Jihadi attackers were inspired by ISIS
- It comes ten days after Sri Lanka's police chief issued alert on possible attacks to come
- A six-foot pipe bomb was intercepted and destroyed by the Air Force on the way to Colombo International Airport