WASHINGTON, Aug 10 (AFP) - The US embassy in Sri Lanka's capital was closed indefinitely Tuesday as a precautionary measure after it received mail containing a powdery substance, the State Department said Tuesday.
The department's deputy spokesman, Adam Ereli, said "professional testing" of the unidentified white powder was currently underway and no results had been obtained yet.
"Today, in Colombo, the embassy received mail that may have been contaminated. The embassy closed as a precautionary measure," Ereli told reporters.
"My understanding is that it was unidentified white powder," he said.
No decision had been made on when the embassy would reopen, he said.
Staff at the embassy were ordered Tuesday to leave the embassy compound as well as a nearby building where the USAID and the US Information Service was located, sources in Colombo said.
An embassy spokesman said the sudden closure was prompted by "security reasons".
Diplomatic sources said two upper floors of the embassy, located within a high-security zone of the capital, were closed initially following receipt of a letter which contained some powder.
Fearing an anthrax-type attack, the embassy shut its air conditioning system, switched off fans and ordered staff to leave, a source said.
Last week, the US embassy in India's capital New Delhi was partially closed for a day due to security fears.
The State Department said the closure was "in response to threat information that was received from law enforcement sources."