Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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Thirteen more skeletal remains were exhumed from the Chemmani mass grave on Monday and a further seven newly identified, bringing the total identified at the site to 412, of which 390 have now been exhumed, as the excavation, the largest at any mass grave on the island, entered its 31st day. Monday, the 31st day of the third phase of the court-supervised process, saw three sets of remains…

Sri Lanka bans burqa, niqab and face coverings

Full face coverings, including the burqa and niqab, are to be banned from tomorrow in Sri Lanka. 

Facial recognition system to be installed at Colombo airport

A new Facial Recognition System is to be installed at Sri Lanka's main airport in Colombo following the Easter Sunday bombings by Islamist extremist groups. 

India conducts raids in Kerala in connection to the Sri Lanka attacks

India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) has raided the houses of at least four people in North Kerala in relation to the Easter Sunday bombing in Sri Lanka which claimed over 250 lives.

The targets of the raid lived in Kasargode and Palakkad and were identified as having followed Zahara Hashim devotedly on social media. Hashim is a radical Islamic preacher who is accused of having planned the attacks in Sri Lanka.

UN Security Council condemns Easter Sunday bombings

<p>The UN Security Council has released a statement condemning the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka which claimed the lives of almost 300 people and urged all states to support Sri Lanka in its efforts to hold the perpetrators accountable.</p> <p>This statement comes as the President blamed&nbsp;UN investigations into allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sri Lanka for a weakening of the state’s security apparatus.&nbsp;</p> <p>Sri Lanka is currently under a state of emergency under which social media outlets are blocked and the police authorise are able to make arbitrary arrests.&nbsp;</p>

CID detain mother of suspected Batticaloa church bomber

Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) today detained the mother of the suspected suicide bomber at the Batticaloa Zion church in the Easter Sunday blasts. 

President bans groups accused of Easter Sunday blasts

Sri Lankan president, Maithripala Sirisena today using emergency legislation to ban the Islamist extremist groups accused of being responsible for the Easter Sunday blasts. 

In a statement the president's media division said National Thawheed Jammath (NTJ) and Jamathei Millathu Ibraheem (JMI) had been banned. 

Questions over how the bombers were able to carry out such attacks remain however after numerous reports, including a letter from the Deputy Inspector General of Police stated that the Sri Lankan leaders were warned repeatedly about the attacks by their own intelligence personnel and by Indian counterparts. 
 

Sri Lankan police investigate Islamist extremist links to 2018 checkpoint shooting

Sri Lankan police are actively investigating if Islamist groups responsible for the Easter Sunday suicide attacks are also responsible for the killing of two officers in Batticaloa last year, after a missing police rifle was found in a raid yesterday. 

Sri Lanka's president blames UN inquiry for causing Easter Sunday attacks

Sri Lanka's president, Maithripala Sirisena blamed the UN inquiry into war crimes during the armed conflict for the suicide bomb attacks by Islamist extremists on Easter Sunday. 

Valikaamam East condemns Easter Sunday blasts

Valikaamam East Divisional Secretariat passed a motion this week condemning the Easter Sunday blasts, which killed over 250 people. 

Gotabaya announces intention to run for presidency

Sri Lanka’s former defence chief Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who was at the helm when state forces killed tens of thousands of Tamils, announced this week that he would run for presidency in upcoming elections.