The former Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapaksa visited the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader, R Sampanthan while he was in hospital with an illness.

Mr Sampanthan was admitted to a private hospital in Colombo on Thursday with an undisclosed illness. 

Churches across the North-East celebrated Christmas today, December 25, with devotees gathering over night for Midnight Mass. 

Tamils gathered for Midnight Mass at St Mary's church in Batticaloa, 12 years on from the assassination of the Tamil MP Joseph Pararajasingham inside the church during the service on December 24, 2005. Devotees remembered his death, recalling that 12 years later no one has faced justice. 

There have been more than 90 incidents of attacks on Christians in Sri Lanka in 2017 alone said the National Christian Evangelical Alliance of Sri Lanka (NCEASL), noting a rise in the number of assaults.

NCEASL general secretary Godfrey Yogarajah told Christianity Today that there have been hundreds of attacks on Christians since the government of Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena came in to power, adding that the number of incidents rises in the run up to Christmas.

Yesterday marked the 12th death anniversary of the late Tamil politician Joseph Pararajasingham, who was shot dead on Christmas Eve by armed government paramilitary men in 2005.

Despite the present government's pledge of accountability and almost two years passing since the UNP-SLFP coalition came to power, no one has been held accountable for his death.

Mr. Pararajasingham, who was a senior Tamil National Alliance (TNA) figure, and the MP for Batticaloa district, was shot and killed by two gunmen whilst he was attending Christmas prayers at the St Mary's church in Batticaloa town. His wife, Sugunam Pararajasingham was seriously wounded in the gunfire.

The cremation of a Buddhist monk, led by Sri Lankan army and police forces, in a location adjacent to both a memorial for Tamil massacre victims and a Hindu temple has caused anger in Jaffna.

Sri Lanka's minister of fisheries and aquatic resource development, Mahinda Amaraweera reiterated on Saturday that the government would not sell "even an inch of state owned land to private investors."

"The current government has been successful in its effort to regain State land sold to foreigners by the previous regime," Minister Amaraweera was quoted by Ada Derana as saying. 

Prosecutors in Malaysia have agreed to withdraw an appeal over the conviction of a Malaysian human rights activist who screened the ‘No Fire Zone’ documentary highlighting massacres committed by the Sri Lankan military during the final stages of the armed conflict on the island.

Lena Hendry, a former programme director for media rights NGO Pusat Komas, was convicted over the screening of the documentary and eventually fined Malaysian Ringgit 10,000.

The prosecution had appealed for a harsher sentence, stating that the documentary screening was held without public approval.

The Sri Lankan government plans to establish new wind and solar power plants in the North-East, Colombo Page reported. 

A 100MW wind power plant in Mannar Island is to be established in Mannar island, which the government will then develop into an energy park. 

A 100MW solar power energy park is planned to be built in Pooneryn, Kilinochchi by 2020. 

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena praised the Sri Lankan army as “world recognised” and pledged to continue supporting troops in an address at a military passing out ceremony last week.

The Sri Lankan navy announced the completion of a newly constructed welfare building and transport yard at its base in Kayts, Jaffna this month, as the military continues to consolidate its presence in the North-East.