Death toll rises in suicide blast at marathon

A suspected Tamil Tiger suicide attacker bombed the opening ceremony of a marathon outside Sri Lanka’s capital today, killing a powerful government minister, a former Olympian and 12 others, the military said. Nearly 100 were wounded.

The bombing, the second this year to kill a senior government official, showed while the rebels might be on the defensive against a military onslaught on their heartland in the north, they retained the ability to launch devastating attacks deep in government territory.