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Columbus church plans Sunday memorial service for Sri Lanka bombing victims

North Christian Church service at 3pm
Posted at 11:29 AM, Apr 26, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-26 11:29:40-04

COLUMBUS — A Columbus, Indiana church will host an interfaith memorial service Sunday for victims of the Easter Sunday Sri Lanka suicide bombings.

The 3 p.m. service is at North Christian Church, 850 Tipton Lane.

On its Facebook page, the church said "the purpose of this gathering is to bring the community together to honor the victims and their families, and to stand up with groups targeted by terrorism, which are so often minority religious groups."

Latest figures reported by the Associated Press put the death toll from the bombings at 253, a lower figure than the 359 fatalities reported earlier by government officials.

Bombs went off at three Christian churches and three luxury hotels on Easter.

Sri Lankan authorities have blamed a local Muslim militant group for the attacks and fear there could be more in coming days.

At least 58 people suspected of being involved in the plot have been arrested.

The Columbus service is expected to include Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, Catholic and Protestant speakers.