We deeply mourn the 290 people who lost their lives and the hundreds more who were injured in the series of bombings carried out in Sri Lanka last Sunday.
The attacks, which targeted three churches during Easter services in the cities of Negombo, Batticaloa, and Colombo, in addition to prominent hotels in Colombo, are a shocking reminder, once again, of the existence of extremist ideals that fester within any given society.
These attacks were clearly carried out in the hopes of striking fear amongst the hearts of a peace-loving people, and further further exacerbate communal tensions, not only in Sri Lanka, but in the rest of the world.
The fact that this was carried out on Easter Sunday -- a Christian holy day celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ -- further highlights how low certain groups are willing to go to hurt the secular and democratic ideals which bring a nation together.
What these terrorists want, more than anything else, is to divide the world into sides but we cannot let that happen.
Now is the time to ensure that we stand united in the fight against extremist activity such as these, and understand that peaceful co-existence amongst religions and cultures serve to strengthen us as communities, societies, and countries.
We must be clear in our message: Violence is not the answer.
Our heart is with the Sri Lankan people and other nationals who lost their lives and were injured in the attack, and we trust the Sri Lankan government will do everything in its power to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.