After 18 months of detention under Sri Lanka's draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act, Muslim poet Ahnaf Jazeem, was brought before the High Court in Puttalam on Monday.

The Colombo District Court reissued summons against International Truth and Justice Project's (ITJP) executive director, Yasmin Sooka to be present in court in February 2022, for a civil defamation case filed by State Intelligence Chief Suresh Sallay.

Sallay who stands accused of abuses including the reported forced confession and denial of medical treatment of a Tamil doctor took legal action against ITJP in June over a 'defamation' claim demanding a compensation of one billion Sri Lankan rupees.

A memorial service was held for the victims of the St James’ Church bombings who were killed by Sri Lankan government airstrikes in the early hours of 13 November 1993. The commemorative event took place at the Church in Gurunagar, Jaffna.

It is estimated that at least nine civilians who had gathered for worship were killed in the attack. The ancient church was also destroyed in the repeated airstrikes. 

The commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force, Sudarshana Pathirana observed the fall out parade of the No 7 Contingent of the aviation unit before their deployment to the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) at the end of this month, despite ongoing human rights concerns.

The unit comprises of 20 officers and 90 airmen and will serve in the United Nations helicopter deployment. 

Amidst surveillance from the Sri Lankan security forces, a protest was held outside the divisional secretariat in Nedunkeni this week, demonstrating against ongoing Sinhala colonisation in Vavuniya.

Plainclothed officers from the security forces were seen photographing the protestors as intimidation and surveillance of Tamil political activity continues across the North-East.

The International Cricket Council has announced that Sri Lanka will co-host the 2026 Men's Twenty20 World Cup with India, despite growing alarm over the island's dire human rights record and growing authoritarianism.

Members of British and Scottish parliament, from across the political spectrum, have called on Police Scotland to end its police training program with Sri Lanka and for the British High Commission to heed the "voices of human rights campaigners and those who have either fled from or are still suffering state-driven violence in Sri Lanka".

Responding to former Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's call for Sri Lanka to seek financial support from the US-backed International Monetary Fund Government Minister  Vasudeva Nanayakkara maintained that he would rather the government be destroyed than turn to the IMF.

Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister, G.L. Peiris, met with Bangladesh's Foreign Minister, Dr A.K. Abdul Momen, in Dhaka today and expressed his gratitude to the country for its support at "international fora especially the Human Rights Council and the CMAG (Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group)".

Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, chief of the Tamil National People’s Front, accused the Sri Lankan government of pursuing a plot to alter the demography of the Tamil homeland by confiscating Tamil lands and redrawing the borders of the North-East.  

Speaking in the parliament during a discussion on the Retirement Age Bill, Ponnambalam said that “Lands belonging to Tamils have been deliberately appropriated from them for generations by the army and the government.”