Sri Lanka police raise security at popular surf site over threat to Israelis

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Police in Sri Lanka have raised security around a popular surfing destination after receiving information about a possible threat to Israeli travelers, a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Police spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa said special security measures had been put in place at Arugam Bay in the country’s east.

The police statement came after the U.S. embassy in Sri Lanka alerted Americans to avoid Arugam Bay area until further notice due to “credible information warning of an attack targeting popular tourist locations in the Arugam Bay area.”

Thalduwa said the regional police had stepped up security over the past days increasing road blocks and vehicle checks and police will be putting in place security measures around the country to protect tourists who will be visiting Sri Lanka for the oncoming year-end tourist season.

Sri Lanka is slowly emerging from its worst economic crisis and the tourism industry has been a main driver of its recovery.

Simultaneous suicide bomb attacks on three tourist hotels and three churches on Easter Sunday in 2019 caused a downturn in the industry and contributed to an economic collapse three years later.