Sri Lanka’s president Ranil Wickremesinghe “urged a fresh approach” to solving the Israel-Palestine conflict and aired the idea of “four-state solution involving Israel, Palestine, Gaza, and Lebanon,” in public remarks last week.

In a historic moment, the ferry service between Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu, and Kankesanthurai (KKS) in Jaffna, was inaugurated on October 14, 2023. The high-speed ferry, operated by the Shipping Corporation of India, marked the revival of sea connectivity between Tamil Eelam and Tamil Nadu after a hiatus of 40 years.

The journey commenced from Nagapattinam port in the morning with 50 passengers and staff on board, reaching Kankesanthurai at 12:20 pm.

An Eelam Tamil family, who had been displaced from their homes and were residing in Tamil Nadu for more than 30 years, have been arrested as they returned to Jaffna this week.

The Bar Associations in the North-East have called off their ongoing strike but will continue to stage their protest to highlight the eroding independence of the judiciary and the lack of safety for judicial workers on the island, after a judge was forced to flee last month.

The Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) has raised “serious concerns” over the Anti-Terrorism Bill and the Online Safety Bill, two pieces of legislation that are currently being considered in Sri Lanka’s parliament.

The UN Human Rights Office warned that both bills “give the authorities a range of expansive powers and can impose restrictions on human rights, not in line with international human rights law”.

Sri Lanka’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) submitted its report into the fleeing of a Tamil judge who faced death threats on the island, and claimed that “there was no threat to life” in its conclusion.

Sri Lanka has reportedly reached a deal with China’s Exim Bank to restructure $4.2bn of debt, as it looks to release the second tranche of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package that was withheld last month.

The 36th anniversary of the Kokkuvil Pirambadi massacre, when over fifty Tamil civilians were shot dead or crushed with an armoured vehicle by Indian Peacekeeping Forces (IPKF), was commemorated in Jaffna on Thursday.

Muttiah Arumugam, an Eelam Tamil father who had tirelessly searched for his forcibly disappeared son, has tragically passed away in Vavuniya never knowing what happened to his child.

Mannar Diocese Bishop Emmanuel Fernando Andagai has raised the alarm to protect the natural resources of Mannar district and called for immediate action to prevent the exploitation and destruction of the region's natural treasures under the guise of development.

Just days after Sri Lanka’s foreign affairs ministry called for a ceasefire as violence escalated in Israel and Palestine, Ranil Wickremesinghe came out and condemned the Hamas assault.

Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry had originally not placed blame on either party but called for an “immediate halt to violence” and reaffirmed its support for a "two-state solution".

The first female martyr in the Tamil Eelam liberation struggle, 2nd Lt. Maalathy, was commemorated in Jaffna on Tuesday.

The event was led by the women's wing of the Tamil National People's Front.

UK’s Minister for the Indo-Pacific Anne-Marie Trevelyan has met Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe, and will travel to Jaffna during a three day visit to the island.