• Hundreds of STF troops and police deployed in Thunnalai crackdown

    Over 200 Special Task Force troops and police officers have been deployed to the Vadamaradchi town of Thunnalai, resulting in two arrests and the seizure of several vehicles.

    Last month a Tamil man from Thunnalai was shot and killed by Sri Lankan police, resulting in protests and tensions boiling over between locals and police across the Vadamaradchi region.

  • Weapons allegedly used by LTTE found in Mannar

    Seven unexploded mortar shells and a range of other weapons allegedly used by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have been discovered at an abandoned outpost in Mannar, reports Adaderana.lk.

    Officials of Adampan Police said the weapons were recovered using intelligence from Sri Lanka’s Air Force.

  • Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister denies being asked to resign by President

    Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ravi Karunanayake has denied allegations that he was asked to resign by President Maithripala Sirisena in relation to corruption allegations.

    “The reports and rumours that I have been asked to resign from my post is utter nonsense,” Mr Karunanayake told reporters.

  • Tearful prayers on Day 150 of Mullaitivu mothers of the disappeared protest

    Mothers of the disappeared protesting in Mullaitivu marked 150 days since they began their campaign on Friday.

  • Sri Lankan soldiers hold basketball lessons for youth in Kilinochchi

    Troops from Sri Lanka’s security forces held a ‘basketball coaching academy’ for youth in Kilinochchi last month, as the military continues to involve itself in civilian activities in the North-East.

  • Sri Lankan policemen arrested over gold robbery in Mannar

    Two Sri Lankan policemen have been arrested for the theft of gold worth over 10 million rupees in Mannar.

    The Island reports the two policemen had reportedly robbed 16 gold biscuits from a businessman in Pesalai last month.

  • Election monitors threaten legal action over polls postponement

    Sri Lanka's election monitors threatened legal action of the government's decision to postpone elections in Provincial Councils. 

    Elections were due to be held in the Eastern, North-Central and Sabaragamuwa provinces in October this year, however, the government announced last month that it would be postponing them until it was able to hold all provincial council elections on one day. 

  • Sri Lanka's Supreme Court says Inland Revenue bill inconsistent with constitution

    Sri Lanka's Supreme Court ruled this week that the Inland Revenue bill the government was hoping to table this month is 'inconsistent' with the constitution, the Daily Mirror reported. 

    Passing the bill would require amendments or a referendum to be passed in parliament, the Speaker of the House Karu Jayasuriya told parliament today. 

  • ‘Sri Lanka has failed to deliver justice’ - ACF

    The Sri Lankan government has failed to deliver justice for the murder of 17 aid workers said French NGO Action Contre la Faim (ACF), marking 11 years since their murder in Muttur.

  • Sri Lankan president calls investigation into Foreign Affairs ministry statement

    Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena called for an investigation into a statement released by the country's foreign affiars ministry which condemning the firing of an intercontinental missile by North Korea, saying it had not be sanctioned prior to release. 

  • Sri Lanka signs US $300 million framework agreement with UN

    The Government of Sri Lanka and the United Nations signed a 5 year UN Sustainable Development Framework agreement (UNSDF) worth US $300 million on Thursday.

  • Sri Lanka's new Army Commander pays homage to Buddhist prelates and receives blessings

     

    Sri Lanka’s newly appointed Commander of the Army, Mahesh Senanayake, payed homage to the 'highest Buddhist seats in Sri Lanka'  at the Temple of Tooth in Kandy on Friday.

    Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake  "committed the age old tradition of paying obeisance to the highest Buddhist seats in Sri Lanka" and received blessings from chief prelates of the Asgiriya and Malwatte chapters according to the army website.

  • Families of recently detained Tamil youth accuse Sri Lankan police of using torture

    Families of Tamil youth that were arrested over recent weeks in relation to attacks against Sri Lankan police officers in Jaffna have accused the police of torturing two young boys and forcing them to sign statements.

    In a complaint to Sri Lanka’s Human Rights Commission the families further accused the police of threatening to put a detention order on the arrested youth under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. 

  • 11 years no justice for massacred ACF aid workers

    On August 4th 2006, the Sri Lankan military lined up and summarily executed 17 aid workers with the French NGO Action Contre la Faim (ACF) in Muttur. The aid workers were mostly Tamil. Eleven years on, no one has been held to account for this crime. 

    Marking 11 years since the massacre, ACF said,

    “The Sri Lankan government has failed in its duty to uphold international humanitarian law and to protect civilians and aid workers, and it has failed in its duty to deliver justice for the perpetrators of the massacre of these 17 humanitarians,”

    Condemning the massacre as a war crime, ACF said in 2007: 

    “The Muttur slaughter can't be considered only as a "collateral damage" during the Muttur battle: our team has been specifically and deliberately targeted, their death has been organised execution style with bullets shot in their head. Everything was consciously and brutally planned: the victims were kneeling, unarmed and defenceless. The culprits of this massacre are the ones who were carrying the arms. We can assert that this massacre is a war crime in violation of the Geneva Conventions."

  • 13 Tamil youths arrested in Vadamaradchi crackdowns

    Thirteen Tamil youths have been arrested in the Vadamaradchi North area as of Wednesday, citing various violent infractions following tensions between locals and police.

    The arrests follow the Sri Lankan Inspector General of Police's declaration that the police and armed forces would be joining forces to crackdown on violence in the Jaffna district.

    Two Tamils were arrested in Nelliady for attacking a police inspector’s house.

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