Religious leaders urged the Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to release all the Tamil political prisoners and grant them amnesty as the increasing threat of COVID-19 in prisons threatens their welfare.

As leaders around the world congratulate Joe Biden on assuming office as the 46^th President of The United States, the head of Sri Lanka’s army who remains barred from travel to the USA over his role in overseeing the execution of Tamils, delivered his own message to the American leader.

“I express my heartiest congratulations on your acceding to the highest cachet in the World (sic),” wrote Shavendra Silva on Twitter.

The destruction of the Mullivaikkal monument at the University of Jaffna on January 8 is an erasure of collective memory, writes Thamil Venthan Ananthavinayagan in The Diplomat.

Ananthavinayagan, a lecturer in public international law writes:

As US President Joe Biden looks to take up duties this week, Victoria Nuland is set to serve as his Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs – a figure who in her previous role as State Department spokesperson commented extensively on Sri Lanka and calls for an internationalised accountability process.

Nuland is set to become the State Department’s third highest ranking official, serving under Antony Blinken and Wendy Sherman, both of whom have also commented on Sri Lanka in the past.

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^{French President Emmanuel Macron}

Over 20 French MPs have called on President Emmanuel Macron to ensure that France "as a member of the United Nations Security Council, use all its influence" and “enable the Tamil people to finally live in safety in Sri Lanka”.

^{Accused war criminals : Shavendra Silva (Left) Kamal Gunaratne (Right)}

Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary and accused war criminal Kamal Gunaratne has vowed to restore the Buddhist 'Deegawapiya Stupa' situated in the Eastern Province to its ‘former glory’ this month.

Tamil Nadu fishermen hoisted black flags on Wednesday in protest against Sri Lanka's move to nationalise previously seized trawlers owned by the fishermen.

In December 2020, fishermen from Rameshwaram were arrested and detained by the Sri Lankan navy who also seized their trawlers.  

Australia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Sri Lanka on the Return and Readmission of Persons which includes provisions for the return of asylum seekers who continue to face threats of torture and abuse in Sri Lanka.

Rawan Arraf, lawyer and director at the Australian Centre for International Justice, described the move as “shameful” on Twitter. She further stated:

Patrick Brown, Mayor of Brampton, has announced that Brampton City Council will build a Mullivaikkal memorial to commemorate the estimated, 75,000 Tamil civilians murdered during the Tamil Genocide.

This announcement follows the destruction of a Mullivaikkal memorial in Jaffna which has been internationally condemned. Whilst the university administration has vowed to rebuild the memorial, local residents have expressed scepticism. 

Ahimsa Wickrematunge the daughter of murdered journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge has filed a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Committee over the alleged Sri Lankan government involvement in her father’s death 12 years ago.

The Centre for Justice and Accountability, an international human rights organisation based in San Francisco, filed the complaint on behalf of Ahimsa Wickrematunge. Her father Lasantha was allegedly killed by a military-linked hit squad while driving to work on Jan. 8, 2009.