The Sri Lankan security forces have continued to ramp up the militarisation of the North-East, with new road blocks set up in Mannar this week.
Locals travelling on coaches and public buses have been subjected to searches by the military, as part of increased security operations that have stepped up in recent months.
In regions across the North-East, armed soldiers have been searching homes and vehicles as well as arresting Tamils, as increased securitisation took hold following the election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa as president in November. Since then, there has been a marked increase in intimidation and harassment of human rights activists and journalists, whilst military search operations have also stepped up.
