Time bomb found in marketplace in Delkanda

A powerful time bomb was defused near a busy marketplace in the Sri Lankan capital only 10 minutes before it was set to explode on Sunday, officials said.

The bomb weighing 8 kilograms (18 pounds) was found concealed among bananas inside a bag in Delkanda, a Colombo suburb, said police spokesman Jayantha Wickramaratne.

People gathered at the market tipped off police about a suspicious bag and the area was immediately cordoned off before the bomb disposal squad safely defused it, Wickramaratne said.

Military spokesman Brig. Prasad Samarasinghe accused separatist Tamil Tiger rebels of planting the bomb to target civilians.

"When it was defused there were only 10 minutes left for the bomb to explode," he said.

Samarasinghe claimed the rebels wanted to killed mostly ethnic Sinhalese in an effort to create a backlash against minority Tamils, which it hoped would encourage more Tamils to join their struggle for a separate homeland.

Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan could not be contacted immediately for comment.