Dambulla, Sri Lanka: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse warned the Sinhalese not to be provoked by the attack on a crowded bus that killed at least 20 people on Saturday.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) "is eager to create a backlash to their terror, to obtain the sympathy of the international community", Rajapakse said in a statement.
More than 700 people have been killed in intensified violence since the government withdrew from a cease-fire with the guerrillas last month.
Bus driver Rohana Wijesiri said he was taking about 100 passengers, mainly elderly Sinhalese women, to the holy city of Anuradhapura.
"When we were passing Dambulla there was a huge blast and the door near my seat got blown away," Wijesiri said.
The top and sides of the bus were ripped apart in the force of the blast. A severed hand could be seen among the blood-stained bags, glass and other debris strewn several metres from the vehicle.
"I do not remember what happened next, but I was running on the road. I saw my conductor fallen on the ground. He too got up and started running with me," Wijesiri said.
"As it [the bus] came near me, I heard thunder. I got thrown away," said Kankeaarachige Michael, a 52-year-old businessman, who was standing by the road when the blast occurred.
"When I saw blood gushing out of my body, I realised it was a bomb," Michael said at Dambulla Base Hospital where he was being treated. Michael lost an eye in the blast.
