LATEST: At least four Americans were killed in the attacks in Sri Lanka, according to a U.S. official briefed on the investigation; one U.S. victim has been identified.
Members of a radical Muslim group have been identified as suspects in a series of Easter suicide bombings on churches and luxury hotels across Sri Lanka.
"The intelligence reports [indicate] that foreign terrorist organizations are behind the local terrorists," Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena's office said in a statement."Therefore, the president is to seek the assistance of the foreign countries." Kowalski, who was born and raised in Wisconsin, had gone to Sri Lanka for work and was staying at the Shangri-La in Colombo when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive in a third-floor restaurant of the hotel.
Quoting colleagues who knew Kowalski best, Fallon said,"Dieter ... was never happier than cheer-leading for our customers and our company and inspiring people in the best way he knew how – by helping them to fix things and doing it with joy, happiness and grace. He was a man who took great pride in the purpose of our company – helping our students progress in their studies and their lives mattered to him.
Harin Fernando -- Sri Lanka's minister of telecommunications, foreign employment and sports -- tweeted a document he described as the security warning passed up the government's chain of command. The explosions unfolded Sunday when at least seven suicide bombers detonated devices inside three Christian churches packed with people celebrating Easter services as well as three hotels popular among Western tourists, officials said. There were eight simultaneous explosions around 8:45 a.m. local time.
Shangri-La Hotel, Cinnamon Grand Hotel and Kingsbury Hotel, all located in Colombo -- and all popular with tourists -- were also targeted. An explosion also occurred near an overpass in the area of Dematagoda near Colombo, the Associated Press reported. He said he looked out his window, saw people pointing at the hotel and knew something was"not right."
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