COLOMBO (AFP) – Sri Lankan police said yesterday they have arrested six people in their hunt for a mob led by Buddhist monks who attacked Rohingya refugees last week. The government has accused the monks of behaving like “animals” during Tuesday’s attack on a centre housing Rohingya Muslims on the outskirts of Colombo. “We have identified the monks who led the attack,” an officer involved in the investigation said. “We have deployed three teams to arrest them.” Two police officers had to be hospitalised after the attack, in which monks and their supporters threw stones and smashed windows and furniture. Five men and a woman have already been arrested and a government official said several police officers were also under investigation for failing to prevent the violence.

• Tags: Buddhist monks, refugees, Rohingya, Sri Lanka