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ASOS billionaire's three children killed in Sri Lanka bombings

ASOS billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen has lost three of his four children in the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka.

A spokesperson for Mr Povlsen, Denmark’s richest man, confirmed the deaths but declined to give any further details.

The family had been on holiday in Sri Lanka at the time with one of Mr Povlsen’s daughters, Alma, posting a photo of her siblings on the island five days ago.

Anders Holch Povlsen and his wife, Anne, photographed in May 2018. Source: Getty
Anders Holch Povlsen and his wife, Anne, photographed in May 2018. Source: Getty

A string of bombings at churches and luxury hotels across Sri Lanka killed 290 people and wounded about 500 in Sunday's attacks.

A senior investigator said on Monday seven suicide bombers had taken part in the attacks.

The names of the deceased children have not been released, but thousands of comments of support have been left on Alma’s Instagram page.

“We are so so sorry for what happened to your family,” one woman wrote.

“No words will ever be enough.”

“My heart breaks for your family,” another follower wrote.

Mr Povlsen is the owner of fashion firm Bestseller – which includes brands like Vero Moda and Jack & Jones – and is the majority stakeholder in online retailer ASOS while also holding a big stake in Zalando.

He owns more than one per cent of all the land in Scotland, according to Forbes.

New blast in Sri Lanka caught on camera

Another explosion went off on Monday in a van near a church in Sri Lanka.

"The van exploded when the bomb defusing unit of the Special Task Force and air force tried to diffuse the bomb," the witness said.

An explosion went off on Monday in a van near a church in Sri Lanka where scores were killed the previous day, when bomb squad officials were trying to defuse it, a Reuters witness said. Rough cut (no reporter narration).
Another bomb exploded while officials were trying to diffuse it on Monday. Source: Reuters

Security force spokesmen were not immediately available for comment.

The blast was caught on CCTV, showing a fireball erupt on a quiet street in the city.

Pope Francis on Monday deplored the attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed nearly 300 people and called for universal condemnation of what he said were "terrorist acts, inhuman acts" that could never be justified.

Citizens of at least 12 countries killed

A view of the damage at St Sebastian's Catholic Church in Negombo. Source: Reuters
A view of the damage at St Sebastian's Catholic Church in Negombo. Source: Reuters

Sri Lanka: The vast majority of the victims were believed to be Sri Lankan citizens, many of them members of the island nation's Christian minority. Names of many victims and other details on their lives were slow to trickle in and difficult to report, in part because Sri Lankan authorities blocked most social media after the blasts.

UK: Sri Lanka's top diplomat in Britain says authorities know of eight British nationals killed in the bombings.

India: Indian officials say eight Indians died in the attacks.

Denmark: A spokesperson for Danish business tycoon Anders Holch Povlsen confirmed three of his children were killed in the attack.

Australia: Prime Minister Scott Morrison says two Australian citizens were killed.

China: Chinese state media say two of the country's citizens died in the blasts.

United States: The State Department says at least four Americans were killed and several others seriously injured. It gave no details about the victims' identities.

Locals react to the news of the bombings, where 290 people were killed and more than 500 injured. Source: Reuters
Locals react to the news of the bombings, where 290 people were killed and more than 500 injured. Source: Reuters

Switzerland: The foreign ministry says two Swiss nationals, one of whom also had the citizenship of another country it didn't name, died in the attacks. It said a third member of the family, who had two non-Swiss citizenships, also was killed. It didn't identify the victims.

Others: The Netherlands, Japan and Portugal have also confirmed their nationals were among the dead.

– with AP

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