Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, was hospitalised in Colombo after falling ill during an official visit to Sri Lanka marking 50 years of diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Sri Lankan state, forcing the cancellation of several engagements.

The Sri Lankan cabinet has approved a multi-million-dollar contract to overhaul four military MI-17 helicopters, despite growing scrutiny over irregularities in the tender process and questions surrounding regulatory compliance.

The US$18 million contract was awarded to M/s Winsley Defence Group d.o.o. of Bosnia and Herzegovina, represented in Sri Lanka by M/s Securatec Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. Each helicopter overhaul is expected to cost around US$4.5 million, including transport and insurance.

The Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) expressed their opposition to the appointment of former Sri Lankan military and defence officials to the Office of Reparations, in a letter to Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake. 

In their letter, ITAK noted that retired Sri Lankan naval officer Joseph Terence Gnananandan Sundaram and Wasantha Perera, who served as an additional secretary at the Ministry of Defence, have been recommended to be appointed to the office.