As Cyclone Ditwah battered Sri Lanka this week, Tamil speakers complained of being left without life-saving information, as state institutions issued disaster warnings in Sinhala and English alone. 

The Sri Lankan government has declared a state of emergency as Cyclone Ditwah continues to devastate the island, raising the death toll to 390 with a further 352 individuals reported missing. 

Residents in Mannar’s Nanattan division report insufficient distribution of cooked meals despite ongoing relief efforts

Maaveerar Naal was commemorated in Herning and Kolbaek, Denmark last week.

Tamils in Denmark joined the Tamil nation in commemorating Maaveerar Naal 2025. 

Herning 

 

The Indian military has assisted in relief efforts across Sri Lanka, with rescue operations and aid delivery conducted in flood-stricken regions, in what has been called Operation Sagar Bandhu. 

The Maavilaru reservoir in Trincomalee has been breached in multiple locations, as flood waters continue to rise following Cyclone Ditwah. 

Speaking in parliament on Wednesday, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam paid tribute to the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran and spoke on the hypocrisy of the current government as they pay respects to leaders of the liberation movement in the North-East but speak against Tamil aspirations in the south.

Cyclone Ditwah continues to unleash heavy rains, floods and landslides across the island, in one of the worst weather disasters in recent years.

Despite the deaths of at least 56 people across the island after days of torrential rain triggered severe floods and landslides, Sri Lankan officials have been criticised for the lack of Tamil language warnings to residents.

Writing in the Guardian, Sonia Faleiro highlights how in countries such as Sri Lanka and Myanmar, where Theravada Buddhism is prominent, 'monks have emerged as central figures in movements that promote sectarian hatred' and incite violence. 

Sri Lankan police officers reportedly attempted to disrupt a Maaveerar Naal – or Great Heroes’ Day – commemorations in Kilinochchi yesterday, with one officer accused by organisers of arriving at the site while intoxicated.

At least three people have been killed in Amparai, and more than 40 across the island, as days of intense rainfall triggered severe flooding and landslides, prompting widespread transport closures and emergency rescue operations.

Sri Lanka’s security forces have summoned a Trincomalee youth organiser, in what activists say is the latest act of intimidation targeting Tamil civil society. Officials from the Counter Terrorism Investigation Division (CTID) arrived at the office of Thalam on Wednesday and issued a summons ordering Dr C. Hayakirivan — also known as Karthi Hayan — to report to the TPIU in Trincomalee on 28 November 2025.

Sri Lanka’s former president and credibly accused war criminal, Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been hospitalised in Colombo following a medical emergency.