10 die in explosion at Sri Lankan mosque

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, March 10 (UPI) -- A suicide bomber detonated himself at a mosque in southern Sri Lanka Tuesday, killing 10 people and wounding 20 more, authorities said.

The Defense Ministry said the explosion occurred in the Matara district and targeted Muslims attending Milad-un-Nabi observances marking the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, CNN reported.

Mahinda Wijesekara, Sri Lanka's minister of posts and telecommunications, was among the injured, the Defense Ministry said on its Web site.

Authorities blamed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebel group for the explosion, CNN reported. The rebels have been fighting for an independent homeland for the country's ethnic Tamil minority since 1983.