Sri Lanka has ordered 161 foreigners to leave the country for propagating Islam, in violation of their tourist visas.

An immigration official said the missionaries are members of Tabligh Jamat, a group founded in India to spread the teachings of Islam.

He said the group included citizens of Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, and some Arab countries.

Just over 7 percent of Sri Lanka's 21 million people are Muslims. About 70 percent are Buddhist, with most of the rest either Hindu or Christian.