Sri Lankan Blast Kills 26

At least 26 people were killed and 60 injured after an explosion ripped through a packed bus today in Buttala, Sri Lanka. The bombing was followed by gunfire, which medical workers said was responsible for many of the dead. The attack came as the government abandoned an ineffectual ceasefire with the rebel Tamil Tigers. A second bomb later damaged an armored carrier in the same region and injured three soldiers.

The bomb attacks occurred further south than most violence on the island, marking a dramatic new strategy by the rebels. More than 30 people have died in the last two weeks of the ceasefire, which expired today. Some 5,000 have been killed since the ceasefire began in 2000. (More Sri Lanka stories.)