Sri Lanka bomber Abdul Lathief Jameel Mohamed ‘had links to Neil Prakash’

More details have emerged about the Sri Lanka bombers, one of whom studied at a Melbourne Uni was reportedly known for his links to Neil Prakash, as authorities warn of more attacks this weekend.

The Sri Lankan Easter Sunday bombers were from a locally-based terror organisation with links to the Islamic State network, the Prime Minister has confirmed.

Scott Morrison this morning confirmed he had received briefings explaining the links between the Sri Lanka terror group and ISIS.

“Following further briefings I’ve had overnight, I can confirm based on the advice that we have received that it was a locally based Islamic terror organisation that we believe is responsible for those heinous and cowardly attacks that occurred against Christians this past Easter Sunday,” Mr Morrison said from Townsville.

“I can also confirm that there were links between this group and support being provided, including the targets of these attacks, by the Daesh network.

“What this demonstrates is the new front that we’re seeing in combating terrorism around the world.

“That is returning foreign fighters going back to wherever they have come from, whether they were fighting in Syria or elsewhere, going back with skills and training and capability to be able to deploy these types of attacks, plugged in to a broader Daesh network that can provide support, money, instruction and target identification.”

Abdul Lathief Jameel Mohamed. Picture: Supplied

The Sri Lankan suicide bomber who studied at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne was known to Australian authorities for links to ISIS operative Neil Prakash.

The Australian reports that Abdul Lathief Jameel Mohamed, one of nine suicide bombers ­responsible for a string of attacks that killed 359 people across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, was investigated by the Joint Counter Terrorism Team in 2014.

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Sources said that Mohamed travelled to Syria and joined Islamic State before returning to Sri Lanka. It is unknown how much contact he had with Prakash, who was sentenced to seven and a half years in jail in Turkey back in March for terrorism offences, but The Australian reports that there was at the very least an “online” link between the pair. There is no evidence ­Mohamed and Prakash knew each other while they were both in Melbourne.

The Joint Counter Terrorism Team investigation found that he wasn’t a threat while in Australia.

The Australian Federal Police and ASIO, however, are taking another look at his relationships while he was in Australia.

Mohamed detonated his bomb close to the New Tropical Inn guesthouse killing two people. His attack was the seventh of the day and caused the fewest ­fatalities.

One of Mohamed’s sisters, Samsul Hidaya, said he had become “deeply ­religious” in ­Australia.

“He was normal when he went to study in Britain, and normal when he came back. But after he did his postgraduate in Australia, he came back to Sri Lanka a different man,” she told the Daily Mail.

“He had a long beard and had lost his sense of humour. He ­became serious and withdrawn and would not even smile at anyone he didn’t know, let alone laugh.”

Security sources said Mohamed’s target was originally the five-star Taj Samudra Hotel — but the attack was foiled by a faulty suicide vest.

He then struck a guesthouse close to Colombo Zoo, killing himself and another person.

The Taj Samudra sits between the Shangri-La and the Cinnamon Grand hotels, which were both attacked in simultaneous bomb blasts.

Former Melbourne man Neil Prakash has urged terrorist attacks in Australia in a new Islamic State propaganda video, in which the top Australian in the group also details becoming a Muslim and his journey to jihad. Picture: Supplied

WARNINGS OF MORE ATTACKS THIS WEEKEND

In an unusually specific warning, the U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka said places of worship could be hit by extremists this weekend.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said militants who may have explosives remain on the loose in the country and “may go out for a suicide attack.” “We have rounded up a lot of suspects, but there are still active people on the run,” Wickremesinghe said in an interview with The Associated Press. “They may be having explosives with them, so we have to find them.”

“Sri Lankan authorities are reporting that additional attacks may occur targeting places of worship,” the U.S. Embassy warned on Twitter. “Avoid these areas over the weekend, starting tomorrow.” Britain advised its citizens against traveling to the island country. Sri Lanka’s Islamic religious affairs minister appealed to Muslims to avoid gathering for Friday prayers and urged them to pray at home. The noon prayers are the most important in the week for Muslims.

A man holds up a sign reading "Terror never win" as he attends a commemoration event by the youth parties for the victims of the bomb attacks in Sri Lanka, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Picture: AFP

DEATH TOLL REVISED DOWNWARDS

According to the BBC, Sri Lanka has since revised the death toll from Sunday’s blasts down from 353 to 253.

The health ministry blamed a calculation error as the cause for the necessary revision of 100 fewer casualties.

PERTH-BASED VICTIMS REMEMBERED

(L-R) Bill Harrop and Sally Bradley were killed in the bombings while on holiday in Sri Lanka.

The family of retired firefighter Bill Harrop and wife Dr Sally Bradley, who were killed in the Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka, have been remembered as a couple “dedicated their lives to saving and helping others”.

In a statement issued by the Metropolitan Police, Mr Harrop’s sons Gavin and Miles remembered their father who moved to Australia after retirement to “embark on new adventures” which had been so “cruelly ended”.

“Our beloved father Bill Harrop was a devoted father, the best anyone could wish for,” the statement, from Harrop’s sons Gavin and Miles, said.

“His happiest times were spent with his family, sharing good times as we explored the world.”

“Our father was also our hero and he will always be our role model as a family man who protected his community.”

The couple had been living in Western Australia since 2013 but had bought a retirement home in the Cotswolds, nephew Jonathan Bradley said.

Mr Harrop retired from the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service in 2012 after 30 years as a firefighter and was decorated for his role in the aftermath of the 1996 IRA attack on Manchester.

To read more visit The Australian.