Sri Lankan authorities arrested two individuals overnight Thursday on suspicion of planning a terror attack targeting Israeli tourists in the Arugam Bay area, following a severe travel warning issued by Israel’s National Security Council the day before.
According to local reports, the Sri Lankan defense forces received intelligence from India's spy agency about a planned attack on Israelis between October 19-23 in Arugam Bay. One of the suspects is believed to have traveled from Iraq, and investigators discovered that one of the two detainees had previously been imprisoned on international drug trafficking charges.
Authorities also revealed that the suspects were allegedly paid 50,000 Sri Lankan rupees ($170) to carry out the attack.
The travel warning issued by Israel on Wednesday urged all Israelis to immediately leave the Arugam Bay area and coastal regions in southern and western Sri Lanka due to "updated information on a specific terror threat targeting tourist areas and beaches."
Officials said the intelligence indicated an imminent attack, describing it as a "hot alert" similar to a foiled Iranian plot to target Israelis in Turkey during the summer of 2022.
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