Galagoda Gnanasara, an extremist Sinhala Buddhist monk, has made the unfounded claim that “Wahhabi groups are infiltrating society on the issue of cremation or burial of Muslims who die due to coronavirus”.

The monk stated the allowing for proper burial was allowing “Muslim extremism” to grow and the government should not allow it.

Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) General Secretary and former Eastern Provincial Councillor, Poopalapillai Prasanthan, was arrested by Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigations Department (CID) officers on 12 November 2020, on alleged witness tampering charges.

The vehicle of Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Vanni MP Vino Noharathalingam was attacked by a group of allegedly intoxicated youths.

The MP was travelling from Mannar to Vavuniya when his vehicle was stopped and attacked the group in the Katpakapuram area in Vavuniya. The attack is reported to have caused considerable damage to the vehicle.

The attack was reported to the police.

A 6-year-old girl has died after falling into a newly cut toilet pit in the village of Panrikkeithakulam in Omanthai, Vavuniya. The victim was identified as Satyaseelan Saivini.

Human remains were found in the Karippaddamurippu region in Mankulam, Mullaitivu last week.

A 17-year-old from Thunukkai, Mullaitivu District was arrested in connection with an allegedly recovered locally made firearm in the district.

Mallavi police made the arrest during a raid conducted by the on Sunday evening. 

The police said that the youth was going to be produced in the Mullaitivu Magistrates’ court on Monday and that investigations  were ongoing. 

Almost 500 families have been affected by a shortage of drinking water across several villages in the Vavuniya District. 

After at least 120 pilot whales became beached at Panadura earlier this month, experts have suggested that a Sri Lankan military exercise in the Bay of Bengal may have lead to the mammals becoming disoriented and stranded.

Tributes have flooded in this week as yet another Tamil doctor passed away from coronavirus in the UK this week, as coronavirus infections rise across the country.

The Sri Lankan military announced the establishment of a new “Drone Regiment” this week, as it was deployed in parts of the island where the armed forces have been arresting those it claims have been breaking coronavirus lockdown regulations.

The prospect of a Biden-Harris administration at the White House has brought both hope and trepidation around the world. In Sri Lanka, some in Colombo’s polity are nervous. Amongst the Tamils, there is both wariness and tempered optimism about what the new administration may bring. A hope that come January, there will be opportunities to help address past failures.

The United Nations (UN) reiterated their concerns with Sri Lanka's mandatory cremation policy as "the only method for the disposal of bodies suspected of COVID-19 infection," in a letter to Sri Lanka's prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. 

"I deem it important to inform you that I have received impassioned appeals from within and outside the Muslim community that perceive the current policy on burials as discriminatory," UN Resident Coordinator, Hanaa Singer wrote. 

The Indian government has reportedly "shared information" with Britain, in an attempt to ensure that the UK upholds the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as a terrorist organisation.

Sri Lanka’s sports minister, Namal Rajapaksa, has announced plans to renovate the Duraippah football stadium in Jaffna, the site of a mass grave which held dozens of bodies.

The announcement came during his visit to Duraippah stadium, where he was accompanied by SLFP MP Angajan Ramanthan; Mayor of Jaffna Emmanuel Arnold; and Minister Thenuka Vithanagamage.