Two Tamil men accused of aiding a 2008 a bombing attempt on former Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena—then the country’s Agriculture Minister—have spent nearly 16 years in remand custody, with their case finally heard last week.

Vanni District Member of Parliament Selvam Adaikalanathan has urged the Sri Lankan government to immediately return gold jewellery belonging to Tamil civilians, warning against attempts to seize the property that was taken by the military during the armed conflict.

The Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) has issued a letter to Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake, calling for the immediate withdrawal of a Gazette notification issued under Section 4 of the Land Settlement Ordinance, which could pave the way for the mass appropriation of lands in the Tamil North-East.

The Sri Lankan government has issued a Gazette notification announcing the mass appropriation of lands across the Tamil homeland, including large coastal areas from Pudumatalan to Mullivaikkal—site of Sri Lanka's genocide of Tamils in May 2009.

A photograph of Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake taken during the government’s May Day rally in Colombo has swiftly been removed from official platforms at the request of authorities.