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Australian embassy offers staff flights out of Sri Lanka

The Australian government has offered staff in the country and their families flights out of Sri Lanka, after more warnings that terror attacks may be possible in the wake of the Easter Sunday bombings.

An Australian Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said "voluntary departures to return to Australia" were being made available to embassy staff and their families, as well as for volunteers in the country working under the Australian Volunteers International (AVI) program.

"We continue to encourage all Australians in or travelling to Sri Lanka to consider the travel advice, including volunteers and volunteer organisations," a DFAT spokesperson told the ABC.

The Australian government’s official travel advice warns that "attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners”.

 “Security has been stepped up across the island," it adds.

See more from ABC here.

The news of the voluntary evacuations comes after Alaina Teplitz, the US ambassador to Sri Lanka, said that some militants involved in the Easter Sunday attacks may be at large and could be plotting fresh attacks.

 

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