Story highlights Violence sparked by death of a Sinhalese Buddhist man

Last time state of emergency was in place was during country's 26-year civil war

Colombo, Sri Lanka (CNN) A state of emergency has been imposed in Sri Lanka for the first time since the civil war following days of communal violence between the island's Sinhalese and Muslim communities.

The special measures, enacted by the government Tuesday, will see soldiers deployed across the island for an initial 10-day period in a bid to prevent the unrest from spreading.

Violence has so far centered in and around the city of Kandy, located in the island's Central Province, where the death of a Sinhalese Buddhist youth on March 4, allegedly at the hands of a group of Muslim men, has sparked riots and arson attacks on Muslim businesses and mosques.

Sinhalese Buddhists make up about 75% of the population in Kandy.

A local Muslim politician, who did not want to be named through fear of reprisals, told CNN Wednesday that four mosques, 37 houses, 46 shops and 35 vehicles were destroyed in the initial outbreak of violence, though he cautioned the true number could be higher, with sporadic incidents continuing to flare-up.

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