The Sri Lankan anti-Muslim riots were a series of religious riots targeting Muslims that began in the town of Ampara located in Sri Lanka on 26 February 2018, spreading to the Kandy District from March 2 until its end on March 10, 2018.

On 21 April 2019, Easter Sunday, three churches in Sri Lanka and three luxury hotels in the commercial capital, Colombo, were targeted in a series of coordinated ISIS-related terrorist suicide bombings. Later that day, two smaller explosions occurred at a housing complex in Dematagoda and a guest house in Dehiwala. A total of 269 people were killed,[2][3] including at least 45 foreign nationals,[12] three police officers, and eight suicide bombers. An additional 500 were injured.[a] The church bombings were carried out during Easter services in Negombo, Batticaloa and Colombo; the hotels bombed included the Shangri-La, Cinnamon Grand, Kingsbury[18] and Tropical Inn.[b] According to the State Intelligence Service, a second wave of attacks was planned, but was prevented due to government raids.[23]