207 killed in Easter Catholic church explosions, 450 injured

We're signing off for the night. Thank you to everyone who has followed our live coverage of the devastating attacks in Sri Lanka. 

Here is a summary of what we know so far.

You can also continue to follow the story here.

A few key points:

• Social media was blocked and a curfew put in place in Colombo late on Sunday. The curfew will remain in place until 6am local time on Monday.
• The social media blackout and congested telephone lines may make it difficult for people in the area to make contact. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it was making urgent enquiries to determine if any Australians were affected. If you have family or friends in Sri Lanka, DFAT says you should first try and make direct contact. You should then call DFAT’s Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 (within Australia) or [phone] (from overseas) if no contact can be made.

Related articles:

• Witnesses recounted the devastation in the minutes after the attacks.
• World leaders have condemned the bombings.

Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardena has described the eight blasts as a terrorist attack carried out by religious extremists, although no one immediately claimed responsibility for the blasts.

Dramatic details have emerged of a police raid following the eighth blast. 

Three police officers were killed while conducting a search operation at a suspected militant hideout in Dematagoda, on the outskirts of Colombo, where the last of eight blasts took place, according to AP.

Sri Lankan police commandos enter a suspected hideout of militants following a shootout in Colombo. Credit: AP

As police closed in, at least two more blasts occurred, with the occupants blasting explosives to prevent arrest.

The nearly simultaneous first six blasts on Sunday morning toppled ceilings and blew out windows at a famous Catholic church in Colombo, the capital, and at three luxury hotels in the city.

The two other blasts occurred at St Sebastian Catholic church in Negombo, a majority Catholic town north of Colombo where footage showed people dragging the injured out of blood-splattered pews, and at the Protestant Zion church in the eastern town of Batticaloa.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe promised to "vest all necessary powers with the defense forces" to take action against those responsible.

We know there have been eight explosions in Sri Lanka today, with at least 207 people dead and 450 hospitalised. We know churches and luxury hotels were targeted, with seven suspects arrested. But many questions remain: 

• Who is behind the attacks, how coordinated were they, and what was the motive? And how did such a sophisticated terror plot go undetected? 
• Who are the victims? Australian officials are scrambling to determine any casualties, while dozens of foreigners are reported dead, including American, British, Chinese, Portugese and Dutch nationals. 
• How effectively is the Sri Lankan government handling the crisis? They have ordered a curfew and blocked major social media platforms, indicating they are struggling to contain the chaos. 

The death toll keeps rising, with the latest total reaching 207 and a further 450 in hospital, according to Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera. 

Victims from China, Portugal and the Netherlands are among the dozens of foreign nationals confirmed dead in the attacks.

Hospital sources told AFP that American and British citizens are also among the dead.

An elderly woman is led away from St Anthony's Shrine after one of the blasts in Colombo.Credit: AP

The Sri Lankan government has arrested seven suspects after eight bombings devastated the island nation on Easter Sunday. 

Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardane also said the death toll had risen to 190. 

Here's an infographic that depicts the location of the attacks:

Police investigate the damage at the Shangri-La Hotel in Colombo.Credit: EPA

BBC reported Sri Lankan Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardane saying that authorities had identified those responsible and they would be "taken into custody as soon as possible". 

Meanwhile news agency AFP reports a suicide bomber was responsible for the eighth blast. 

The explosion, reported to be in the northern suburb of Orugodawatta, killed at least three people. 

It's still unknown whether any Australians are affected by the explosions in Sri Lanka today. 

But what we do know is that Sri Lanka has grown in popularity as a tourist destination in recent years. 

In the past decade, since the end of the civil war, the number of Australians visiting this sub-continental island nation has surged 400 per cent. Sri Lanka is only small, and somewhat niche, and yet it's the sixth most-searched destination on traveller.com.au.

Security forces inspect the carnage after an explosion hit St Anthony's church in Kochchikade in Colombo, Sri Lanka.Credit: Anadolu Agency

Opposition leader Bill Shorten said the news was "devastating".

"It is a particularly despicable act to target worshippers at one of the holiest times of the year for Christians, Easter Sunday," he said in a statement. "An attack on any religion is an attack on all religions; it is an assault on our common humanity. We all share a responsibility to unite, condemn and defeat such an attack on our values and our way of life."

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Adern also condemned the attacks.

"New Zealand condemns all acts of terrorism and our resolve has only been strengthened by the attack on our soil," Ardern said. "New Zealand rejects all forms of extremism and stands for freedom of religion and the right to worship safely." 

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the blasts were "truly appalling". 

"We must stand together to make sure that no one should ever have to practise their faith in fear," she wrote on Twitter. 

The head of the European Union's executive Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, said he learned of the bombings "with horror and sadness."

The Sri Lankan government has shutdown access to major social media and messaging services, according to Reuters. 

The government has also ordered an immediate nationwide curfew, as the country is engulfed in chaos and panic. 

The curfew will begin just before sunset at 6pm local time (10.30pm AEST) and remain in place until sunrise at 6am. 

Sri Lanka is under siege as yet another blast rocks the capital, Colombo. 

The explosion is the eighth to hit the country on Easter Sunday. 

The first six blasts occurred about the same time, just before 9am local time. The seventh and eighth explosions happened in close succession much more recently.