Based on a tip-off that a youth group in Araly, a town north of Jaffna, was in possession of guns and swords, Sri Lankan police conducted a search in the town yesterday and arrested at least ten people.
The initial search yielded an indigenous gun and a sword in an area that is reportedly populated by Tamil youngsters. The police confiscated the weapons and arrested two persons in relation to the incident. The arrested have been detained in the Vaddukoddai Police Station and are reportedly being interrogated by the police.
Based on the investigation with the two arrested, the police further carried out arrests of eight other persons. They were released after the police interrogated and received their testimony.
Reports reveal that the two persons who were arrested first are still detained in Vaddukoddai Police Station where the police are conducting further investigations with them.
The arrests come amidst a rise in militarisation across the North-East, with the Sri Lankan security forces carrying out an increasing number of raids.