Sri Lankan military exercise launched in Mullaitivu

Thousands of Sri Lankan soldiers are taking part in a military exercise in the Tamil North-East this week, with delegates from Bangladesh, China, India, Japan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and the USA joining in. The exercise, entitled “Cormorant Strike VII – 2016”, will take place in Kokilai in Mullaitivu, and will have over 3,000 troops participating. The aim is to “maintain combat readiness at all levels with a view to transmitting and sharing the sea of experiences the Sri Lanka Army, has had gathered in the world's biggest and most successful humanitarian operation before May 2009,” said...

Businessman goes missing in Trincomalee

A Muslim businessman who travelled to Trincomalee has been declared missing on Sunday evening, reports NewsFirst . Police report that the man, identified as Mohammed Nazrin of Bandaragama, had travelled to the North-East for a gold auction. Last month an abducted Muslim businessman was found murdered in the South.

Lasantha's body to be exhumed - reports

According to reports in the Sri Lankan press, the body of the former Sunday Leader editor, Lasantha Wickrematunge will be exhumed. Mr Wickrematunge, who was openly critical of the Rajapaksa regime, was assassinated in January 2009. His grave site has been guarded by police, reports Ceylon Today .

Sri Lanka to summon Malaysian envoy over High Commissioner attack

Malaysia's envoy to Sri Lanka is to be summoned on Monday after Sri Lanka's High Commissioner was attacked by anti-Rajapaksa protesters in Malaysia this weekend. "The Malaysian envoy in Sri Lanka would be summoned to the Ministry this morning to register protest," the deputy foreign affairs minister, Harsha de Silva was quoted by the Daily Mirror as saying. "The Sri Lankan government condemned this incident in the strongest possible terms," he said, adding "the Malaysian authorities were conducting investigations".

Sri Lankan president vows not to ‘bow down’ to international pressure

Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena vowed that his government would not “bow down” to international pressure, days after meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon. Speaking at the 65th anniversary of the Sri Lankan Freedom Party, Mr Sirisena told a crowd in Kurunegala that the international community would not be allowed to interfere with the “domestic affairs” of the island. ColomboPage and Colombo Gazette reported the president as adding he would not “bow down” to international pressure and pledged to protect the “sovereignty” of Sri Lanka. AFP quoted Mr Sirisena as stating he...

Sri Lankan High Commissioner assaulted in Malaysia amid protests

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to Malaysia was reportedly assaulted by a group of protestors, amidst continued demonstrations against former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s visit to the country. The High Commissioner, Ibrahim Sahib Ansar, was at Kuala Lumpur airport on Sunday to see off Sri Lankan MP Dinesh Gunawardena, who had accompanied Mr Rajapaksa to Malaysia. The protestors reportedly surrounded the Sri Lankan official and demanded to know the whereabouts of Mahinda Rajapaksa, who they accuse of committing genocide. When Mr Ansar failed to provide an answer, the protestors...

Ranil delivers inaugural address at Indian Ocean Conference 2016 in Singapore

In his inaugural address to the Indian Conference 2016 in Singapore, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe called for the establishment of an Indian Ocean Order to govern the "interaction between states to ensure the safety and security of the Indian Ocean". Wickemasinghe focused on the emerging significance of the Indian Ocean's busy trade corridors and called for the establishment of an Indian Ocean Assembly. "The Indian Ocean Region has an extraordinary opportunity to create something new in the global context and something historically uniquely beneficial to its people," stated the...

Sri Lankan army invited to join UN peacekeepers in Mali

The Sri Lankan army has been invited to join the UN peacekeeping force in Mali, the Sunday Times reported. Citing a senior foreign ministry source, the paper said the "Government of Mali has sought a Sri Lankan peacekeeping contingent as against troops from Pakistan or Bangladesh", which the source said, "was because of the Sri Lanka Army’s successful military defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), one of the world’s deadliest terrorist organisations at the time." The Sri Lanka army has been accused of committing mass atrocities against the Tamil people during the final stages...

Lack of will for meaningful transitional justice say civil society to UN chief

In a letter handed to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, civil society organisations have criticised the Sri Lankan government lack of political will on meaningful transitional justice and its failure to establish a conducive environment for meaningful consultations on any process. The letter, handed to Mr Ban during his visit to Jaffna last week, was signed by Centre for Human Rights and Development, Centre for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights, Home for Human Rights, Tamil Civil Society Forum and The Social Architects. Letter handed over to UNSG Ban Ki Moon on 02 September...

UN chief tells Vali North IDPs will push for resettlement

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon told displaced Tamils from Vali North that he would push for their resettlement into their homes, as he visited an IDP camp in the region on Friday. Mr Ban had visited Jaffna as part of a three day visit to the island, where he also met with the chief minister of the Northern Provincial Council, the Tamil National Alliance, the Sri Lankan prime minister and president.

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