Sri Lanka's police arrested 35 suspected Tamil asylum seekers off the coast near Weligama, in the south of the country, Xinhua reported.

The Tamils, aged between 30 and 40, are all resident in the Northern Province towns of Jaffna, Mankulam, Chavakacheri, Olumadu, Vavuniya, Mullaitivu, Oddusuddan and Mallavi.

According to Xinhua, the arrests on Wednesday were the first of Tamils attempting to flee the country since the new government of Maithripala Sirisena came into power in January.

Police said the Tamils were preparing to sail to another country when they were spotted by the navy.

The US said it welcomes the nuclear agreement signed between India and Sri Lanka during President Maithripala Sirisena's visit to Delhi earlier this week.

State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki told a press briefing on Tuesday the US was aware of the announcement and welcomed regional cooperation.

"We welcome regional cooperation on nuclear energy that is consistent with IAEA safeguards and other international standards and practices," she said.

The deal will see India assist Sri Lanka to build its nuclear energy infrastructure, the Indian foreign ministry said on Monday.

The TNA's MA Sumanthiran called for a strong report on the OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka (OISL), on its delayed release in September.

Speaking to media on Tuesday, the MP said the deferral of the report caused disappointment to the victims, but that UN officials had expressed their confidence that the delayed report will be stronger than if it was released in March.

Mr Sumanthiran said it was important the report is "solid and strong and should liberate our people from their worries".

The Chinese government welcomed the growing partnership between India and Sri Lanka and expressed hope that it can develop its own relationships with both countries.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told media on Tuesday, both Sri Lanka and India are "important and friendly neighbours of China," and good relationships between the three countries will benefit regional stability.

"We hope to work with India to further develop the strategic cooperative partnership for peace and prosperity. We also look forward to fostering the strategic cooperative partnership featuring sincere mutual assistance and long-lasting friendship with the Sri Lankan side," she said.

The Chief Minister of the Northern Provincial Council will not be attending an event due to be held in Jaffna, because of the 'insidious political undertones' of the meeting

The event, entitled 'The Change – Jaffna Youth Conference', was scheduled to be held on 22 February at Jaffna Hindu College's Kumarasamy Hall.

In a letter sent to the organisers, CV Wigneswaran stated,

“Unless the Central Government and Provincial Government Ministers or proper officials discuss initially about the purpose of the meeting and its use to the general public in the Northern Province and jointly come to a conclusion and decide to have a meeting of this sort, it is inappropriate for you to expect me or my ministers to attend such a meeting.”

See his full letter, published on Uthayan, below.

Photographs: K Amirthalingam

As many as 500 Tamil protestors went on hunger strike at the Kiliveddy refugee camp in Trincomalee on Tuesday, demanding to be resettled in their original village in Sampur – land that has been seized by the Sri Lankan military for a High Security Zone.

'Give our lands back' and 'stop atrocities on Sampur people' read placards held by the protestors, who had gathered at the camp entrance and joined the hunger strike.

"We voted for regime change hoping resettlement," the Tamil Civil Society Forum reported the protestors as saying. "But our issues doesn't figure on the 100 day programme".

In addition to being immediately resettled, they also demanded that they be allowed to reopen the Sampur Mahavidyalayam school, which is being occupied by the Sri Lankan navy. The school building is currently being used a base for the security forces.

The villagers have also been denied permission to rebuild a Hindu temple in the village, which was damaged during the armed conflict.

The Tamil Nadu state government said meeting with Sri Lanka to discuss the voluntary repatriation of Eelam Tamil refugees was premature due to ongoing issues affecting Tamils on the island, The Hindu reported.

Governor K. Rosaiah said to the state assembly that any talks should be deferred due to the prevailing atmosphere of fear and intimidation, the militarisation of Tamil areas, non-settlement of internally displaced people and the absence of any concrete and credible measures taken by the Sri Lankan government.

He said the government was committed to the “peaceful, just and honourable resettlement of the refugees”, but added that “voluntary repatriation can be countenanced only after proper rehabilitation of the internally displaced Sri Lankan Tamils”.

(Photos: BBC Sinhala)

Tens of thousands of supporters of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa staged a rally in Nugegoda, calling on him to stand as a prime ministerial candidate in elections later this year.

In a written statement, read out by former government official Dayan Jayatillake, Mr Rajapaksa said he could not ignore their wishes and will make a return to politics.

"What we are experiencing today is not a defeat but a result of a conspiracy," he said in the message. "I say firmly that I am in anyway unable to ignore the wishes of those of you who think about the country and are committed for the country."