A continuous protest by the families of the disappeared held outside the Mullaitivu District Secretariat has now reached its 8th day.

Relatives of the missing and forcibly disappeared continue to protest in Kilinochchi today, with their demonstration now lasting twenty-five days.

As Tamils protest for the release of their lands in Keppapulavu, the Sri Lankan military have been engaged in building a new Buddhist vihara on their occupied land.

The European Union and Sri Lanka agreed that the full implementation of UN Human Rights Council resolution 30/1 remained a priority.

In talks between the EU delegation to the Working Group on Governance, Rule of Law and Human Right and Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, both sides claim to have reaffirmed their joint commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights which included the full implantation of the October 2015 resolution.

Ten Sri Lankan soldiers accused of the Siruppiddy murder – the abduction and murder of two Tamil youths in 1997 – are to be acquitted on the instruction of the Attorney-General. Out of fourteen soldiers remanded, ten were ordered for acquittal, and nine were released with the other having already died.

After the murder in November 1997, sixteen soldiers attached to the Siruppiddiy army camp, including a Lieutenant, were arrested in connection.

A former LTTE cadre who had undergone the Sri Lankan government’s “rehabilitation” program was arrested on Monday, with no clear charges laid out against her.

The woman, reportedly a Mullaitivu resident, was arrested in Wellawaya, as Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena attended a ceremony in the region.

Three other people who were with her have also been detained by the police.

Sri Lanka's navy commander on Sunday rejected reports that officers had fired shots towards Tamil Nadu fisherman and their vessels over recent weeks. 

His statement came after Tamil Nadu fishermen said one of their colleagues was shot dead by the Sri Lankan navy on March 6, and many fishermen boycotted the annual Kachchativu feast in protest at the attacks by the navy. 

The commander of the Sri Lankan security forces in Vanni visited a Sinhala settlement in Vavuniya on Friday, where thousands of Sinhalese villagers were settled in 2013.

The Global Tamil Forum reiterated its call for the full implementation of the UN resolution co-sponsored by Sri Lanka in 2015, adding that the ensure this a new resolution ought be adopted taking into consideration the UN High Commissioner for Human Right's recommendation that the process must include close international monitoring. 

Official data shows that the North-East of Sri Lanka has been worst hit by the ongoing drought.

In the Jaffna district where majority of the rice cultivation is rain fed, crops are facing widespread destruction. The Department of Agriculture stated that almost 99 percent of rice cultivation was fully or partially destroyed.

Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Amparai, Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi are also areas that have been greatly impacted by the drought.

Sri Lanka is to scale back the Hambantota port deal with China after widespread protests by local residents.

The original deal was to transfer an 80% stake to China Merchants Port Holdings through a long lease. However, after protest by local community members and some politicians, it is expected that the deal will be renegotiated.