The cremation of a Buddhist monk, led by Sri Lankan army and police forces, in a location adjacent to both a memorial for Tamil massacre victims and a Hindu temple has caused anger in Jaffna.

Sri Lanka's minister of fisheries and aquatic resource development, Mahinda Amaraweera reiterated on Saturday that the government would not sell "even an inch of state owned land to private investors."

"The current government has been successful in its effort to regain State land sold to foreigners by the previous regime," Minister Amaraweera was quoted by Ada Derana as saying. 

Prosecutors in Malaysia have agreed to withdraw an appeal over the conviction of a Malaysian human rights activist who screened the ‘No Fire Zone’ documentary highlighting massacres committed by the Sri Lankan military during the final stages of the armed conflict on the island.

Lena Hendry, a former programme director for media rights NGO Pusat Komas, was convicted over the screening of the documentary and eventually fined Malaysian Ringgit 10,000.

The prosecution had appealed for a harsher sentence, stating that the documentary screening was held without public approval.

The Sri Lankan government plans to establish new wind and solar power plants in the North-East, Colombo Page reported. 

A 100MW wind power plant in Mannar Island is to be established in Mannar island, which the government will then develop into an energy park. 

A 100MW solar power energy park is planned to be built in Pooneryn, Kilinochchi by 2020. 

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena praised the Sri Lankan army as “world recognised” and pledged to continue supporting troops in an address at a military passing out ceremony last week.

The Sri Lankan navy announced the completion of a newly constructed welfare building and transport yard at its base in Kayts, Jaffna this month, as the military continues to consolidate its presence in the North-East.

The Sri Lankan army coerced local school children to participate in a Christmas celebration at a military camp in Kilinochchi this month. 

In a statement explaining its vote in favour of the UN resolution on the status of Jerusalem, the Sri Lankan government said it had voted based on its "traditional and principled position". 

It was not a vote against any member state of the UN, Sri Lanka stressed, adding that it believed in the "vision of two states living side by side in peace, security and mutual recognition". 

Sri Lanka's minister of law and order, Sagala Ratnayake on Thursday warned of strict legal action against anyone inciting communal or religious violence via social media posts. 

An increased number of police personnel had been deployed ahead of the election in February, the mnister added. 

"The police would act ensuring a free and fair election on instruction by the Elections Commission," Mr Ratnayake said. 

The United Nations’ refugee agency spoke out against the deportation of a Tamil asylum seeker to Sri Lanka, stating it was a worrying breach of the Australian government’s international legal obligations and presented “a serious risk of return to danger”.

UNHCR spokesperson Catherine Stubberfield said that “since July 2012, people who sought asylum by sea were excluded from lodging an application in Australia for up to four years”.

“While they were all invited to apply by October 2016, some asylum seekers have been unable to complete this process within the time frame for a range of valid reasons, including a lack of access to legal representation,” she added.