May 09, Colombo: Eleven civilians were killed in a bomb blast inside a café in Ampara this evening, the Sri Lankan military said.

The explosion in a popular café in Ampara town comes a day before the first local elections in the region in two decades.

“Eleven civilians were killed and 29 injured from the LTTE bomb which was planted inside a café in the town,” said military spokesperson Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara.

Authorities have tightened security for the provincial council elections to be held in Trincomalee, Ampara and Batticaloa.