May 26 (GDI) An expert on terrorist affairs at the Singapore University Professor Rohan Gunaratne says terrorist forces operating on the international level must be defeated in order to build a vigorous Sri Lanka. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Sri Lankan embassies are being entrusted with substantial task in this regard. The Sri Lankan security forces have been able to militarily defeat the world most dangerous terrorist organisation. more..

May 26 (GDI) The Government of Japan has decided to extend additional grant aid totaling US$ 1.4 million for demining activities in Jaffna, Killinochchi and Vavuniya through DDG (Danish Demining Group) and the HALO Trust. This year, the Government of Japan has already provided a grant aid of US$ 700,000 for demining in Mannar through FSD (Swiss Foundation for Mine Action). more..

May 26 (LT) UPFA Parliamentarian Sarana Gunawsardene, who is accused of breaking into a house at Weeragangula village in Yakkala, shot with his firearm to threaten the occupants, assaulted resident Pimal Samaraweera and abducted his 12 year old son, has not been issued a firearm by the Ministry of Defense reported Sergeant R.M.S. Ratnayake to Attanagalla Magistrate and more..

May 26 (TC) “I have experienced the war. I have witnessed people’s suffering. As a result of this, I have decided to become a deminer to serve the people” said Kanagasabai Thayalachandran (31). He hails from Ezhalalai in Jaffna, but got displaced and moved to Vavuniya. He joined the Danish Demining Group in July 2004, and worked as a deminer. Now, he is a team leader and supervises 10 deminers. more..

May 26 (TC) Sri Lankan government won a decisive battle against the Tamil Tigers. The thirty years of Tiger terror campaign came to a clear end. However, the next real war for the government is resettlement of internally displaced people, or IDPs, in Sri Lanka. According to many media and human rights reports, the IDP camps are overcrowded. The UN chief claimed that these IDP camps are some of the worst places he had seen in his traveling. more..

May 26 (LT) Responding to a report to the Colombo Chief Magistrate Nishantha Hapuarachchi by the CID regarding Velayuthan Dayanithi alias Daya Master and Velupillai Kumar Pancharathnam alias George Master of the LTTE the Magistrate ordered that they be held for further questioning by the CID. Daya Master and George Master were taken into custody when they had come with IDPs in the North and were seized by the Army. more..

May 26 (GDI) Maha Sangha numbering 500, representing Shasanarakshaka Mandalayas in 20 districts in the South will visit the North today (26) to bless the displaced people in welfare camps. Also relief goods collected from all districts will be distributed among the IDPs, sources said. The Maha Sangha will also participate in an Asheervada and Adhishtana Pahan Pooja Pinkama at the Uda Maluwa of the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, more..

May 26 (LT) More than 275 patients who have been confirmed as suffering from dengue have been found from Hambantota District say reports. Only 120 patients had been reported by 2nd May and within three weeks this number has doubled. Dengue patients have been reported from all health divisions in the district while 152 patients have been reported from Tangalle town area and 61 from Beliatta. more..

May 26 (CT) Army commander Gen. Sarath Fonseka has said the journalists who had been paid by the LTTE to destabilize the military have now been identified, and such traitors should learn a lesson for having betrayed the nation. He was speaking at live 'Thulawa' programme on ITN last evening. Despite the elimination of LTTE leaders and its network, the Tiger ideologies and Eelamist concept have not yet been wiped out, he said. more..

May 26 (AP) Behind sandbagged walls, a driveway lined with metal spikes, a battery of security cameras and rifle-wielding bodyguards sits the man who would be the next leader of Sri Lanka's Tamil community. Douglas Devananda, a former militant leader who bears the scars of nearly a dozen assassination attempts by the rival Tamil Tigers, said that with the rebels' defeat he is ready to assume the leadership of more..

May 26 (CT) A top LTTE cadre, after surrendering to the military, has confessed to having been the leader of a group that had murdered Dr. Palitha Padmakumara, medical superintendent of Nachchikudah Hospital in Batticaloa. Gunaratnam Wimalaraj alias Appa gave himself up through the Red Cross three days ago. He has told police that he had fled the east with a group of 22 on the instructions of the outfit's eastern military leader Keerthi after the Army captured the province. more..

May 26 (CT) Government minister Dallas Alahapperuma says international forces that had tried to rescue the LTTE would be exposed in the coming days. A certain country tried to rescue Velupillai Prabhakaran even at the last moment, while a top foreign figure had continually pressurized on behalf of the lives of 52 LTTE leaders, he told a live interview on Rupavahini last night (May 25). more..

May 26 (MoD) The Government is set to announce a National Framework Proposal on the reintegration of ex-combatants into civilian life shortly. This will be a key element of its post-conflict peace building and development process. The envisioned policy intervention is designed to facilitate the reintegration of ex-combatants and contribute towards durable peace, by improving the employability of ex-combatants for civilian occupation, more..

May 26 (MoD) Vietnam welcomes the recent victory of the Government and people of Sri Lanka. This victory will create favorable conditions for Sri Lanka to concentrate on the cause of national construction and development, contributing to peace, stability and development in the region, Vietnam's Foreign Affairs Spokesman Le Dung said on 21 May 2009 in response to correspondents' question over more..

May 26 (MoD) It has been reported that certain Western countries are in the process of collecting evidence to try the Sri Lankan Leadership, both Political and Military for committing war crimes. What are War Crimes? The concept of War Crimes is a recent one, came into being after conclusion of the World War II. Mass murder of millions of non combatants by Nazi Germany prompted the allied powers to initiate the concept of War Crimes which resulted in the Nuremberg Trials of 1945-46. more..

May 26 (MoD) The menace of terror is finally over. The self proclaimed 'liberator' who was responsible for the massacres of over 65,000 innocents across Sri Lanka for 3 decades is no more, for he and his empire now lies in ashes, buried somewhere in the soils of/off Sri Lanka. The terrorists were defeated in their own battlefield by men - ordinary men who have shown the world how to do the most extra-ordinary of feats ever accomplished in more..

May 26 (LNP) The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) is to use two of the captured LTTE air strips for their activities, SLAF spokesman Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara said. According to the spokesman, they would convert the captured Iranamadu runway east of the A9 road in Kilinochchi into a small air base. The larger airstrip taken from the LTTE close to Mullaitivu would be developed for the use of Sri Lanka Air Force in the near future. more..

May 26 (DN) Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa yesterday said the people can take a cue from the Security Forces’ victory and render their optimum service to the country’s development. The Defence Secretary was speaking at a ceremony to felicitate Security Forces who defeated LTTE terrorists, at a ceremony at the Defence Ministry yesterday. “The Security Forces have proved themselves that nothing is impossible if we have perseverance and dedication. more..

May 26 (DN) The Trade, Marketing, Cooperative Development and Consumer Affairs Ministry is exploring possibility to set up Dedicated Economic Centres (DECs) in the North to provide essential commodities to the public at cheaper rate. According to Trade, Marketing, Cooperative Development and Consumer Affairs Minister Bandula Gunawardena, the Dedicated Economic Centres would provide a better service to the consumers and the producers alike. more..

May 26 (DN) Around 5,100 dengue cases have been reported in 2009 (during the past five months) while the number of dengue deaths reported during the same period is 70. Most deaths have been reported due to Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF) condition. Legal action will be taken from June 1, this year against all persons, institutions and organisations which have mosquito breeding sites, more..

May 26 (DM) The UNP yesterday said the opportunity before us would not last long and could not be restored if neglected. With this in view the UNP said as a political party which loves the county, it would join hands with the government to create an atmosphere for all communities to live in peace and harmony. Opposition UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday said he highly appreciated President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s statement that more..

May 26 (LeN) As the seniors of the ruling SLFP are urging the President Mahinda Rajapakse to dissolve the parliament with the war victory, the President has decided to postpone the decision. He has told to a friendly media head that if he holds the Presidential after the general election there will be no one at least to paste a poster in his campaign. He has also said that some persons will be angry with his following the electoral organizer appointments are given. more..

May 26 (Island) The government plans to look after 308 children who had lost both their parents in the war. They are now housed at a welfare centre established at Menik Farm in the Vavuniya District. First lady Mrs. Shiranthi Rajapaksa following a visit to the welfare centre over the weekend has assured the children that they would be provided with separate accommodation. Senior DIG Nimal Lewke, in charge of the Northern Province told more..

May 26 (Island) The Colombo District Court yesterday issued a stay order on Matale Mayor Hilmy Mohammed, preventing him from selling a gem worth US dollars 325,000. This followed a petition filed by a Thai in the District Court saying that he (the Mayor) was unlawfully holding a gem which was sold to a person called Imran Ali. The petitioner A. K. Rahuman of Bangkok told the Court that he was the original owner of the gem. more..

May 26 (ANN) On May 21, a TNA delegation comprising of R Sambandan, Suresh Premachandran, Mavai Senathirajah, and Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, met India’s National Security Advisor MK Narayanan, Foreign Secretary Shivshanker Menon, High Commissioner Alok Prasad and others at India House. Among the points the TNA delegation made was that the re-settlement of IDPs should be done immediately because 75% of the land was free from landmines and there was no need to keep people in the camps. more..

May 26 (Reuters) Sri Lankan shares rose over 1 percent on Tuesday on interest in blue chips and hotel shares after the end of the island's nation's 25-year war, while the rupee LKR ended flat on exporter dollar sales, brokers said. The Colombo All-Share Price Index .CSE rose 1.27 percent or 26.95 points to 2147.58, after it fell for the first time in seven sessions from a near seven-month high on profit-taking. more..

May 26 (DM) The Immigration and Emigration Department is to take over operations at the Trincomalee Harbour from next month and will establish a sub office in the district, as a move towards preparing for the proposed international airport to be developed in China Bay in the future. Immigration and Emigration Chief P.B. Abeykoon said the department would set up a sub office in Trincomalee to take over duties at the Trincomalee Harbour from June 15. more..

May 26 (Island) TNA MP R. Sampanthan in a statement issued yesterday said a meeting had been arranged with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon at 11.30 pm on May 23 at the Bandaranaike International Airport VVIP Lounge in concurrence with the Foreign Ministry and the UN office but when the delegation arrived at the BIA at 10.30 pm they were informed at the military check point that the Ministry of Defence had informed them not to allow the TNA delegation. more..

May 26 (ANN) Sri Lanka has thwarted an Israeli proposal to send a combined UN and WHO team to investigate the conduct of the Sri Lankan security forces during the recently concluded offensive against the LTTE. The Mahinda Rajapaksa government is expectd to take up this issue with Tel Aviv. Health Minister Nimal Siripala Silva told The Island that the move was made on May 18, the first day of the five-day meeting of the World Health Assembly held in Geneva at the WHO headquarters. more..

May 26 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Tuesday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take "appropriate decision" on the draft resolution presented by the Sri Lankan government to the UN Human Rights Council, saying it was "largely against interest of the Lankan Tamils". In a letter to Mr. Singh, a copy of which was released here, he said "it is widely believed by millions of Tamils spread all over the world that the draft resolution now presented by more..

May 26 (AT) Now that LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is dead, the question is which way the Tamil cause will go. The man who resorted to armed insurgency to achieve his goal of setting up a separate state for Sri Lanka's 12% Tamils is history, but the factors that created him are very much alive. Prabhakaran did not spring up in a vacuum. He was a product of an oppressive system which existed beneath the veneer of democracy. more..

May 26 (WV) USD one million is required daily to provide food and water to almost 300,000 conflict survivors who are housed in a string of camp settlements in northern Sri Lanka, says World Vision. “Funding is becoming a huge concern for aid agencies. Most have already used up a large chunk of their existing relief budgets responding to the crisis,” said Suresh Bartlett, World Vision Lanka’s National Director. more..

May 26 (DM) The Sri Lankan government yesterday sought international police (Interpol) assistance to locate and arrest the LTTE’s arms procurement chief Kumaran Padmanadan alias KP believed to be hiding somewhere in South East Asia. Government sources said countries alerted included Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand from where KP was believed to be operating while Australia and Britain were more..

May 26 (AP) Of all the hardships in this sprawling displacement camp, people most bemoan not knowing what happened to relatives who disappeared in the chaos of the decisive battle that ended the prolonged war between the Sri Lankan military and Tamil Tiger rebels. Scores of ethnic Tamils clustered on both sides of the barbed wire perimeter Tuesday seeking news of their families. Some said they return day after day without success. more..

May 27 (GDI) Prevention of Terrorism Act and State of Emergency will be continued, Leader of The House Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said today (26) in Parliament. The Leader of the House stressed that though terrorism has been completely wiped out, terrorist activists are still at large prowling every corner of the country. “There are terrorist suspects who are already on arrest under State of Emergency. more..

May 27 (GDI) The Health Ministry has taken steps to conduct Special eye clinics for the inmates at the welfare centres in Vavuniya and Chettikulam, The Sri Lanka Eye Surgeons Association is organizing these clinics with the assistance of the vision 20-20 office of the Ministry of Health, Media Secretary to the Ministry of Health Care and Nutrition W.M.D Wanninayake told www.news.lk today (26). more..

May 27 (Xinhua) Russia has pledged to continue to assist Sri Lanka for the restoration of peace and reconstruction in the country after the defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels, the Sri Lankan government said Tuesday. The presidential office said in a statement that Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev told Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Tuesday in a telephone conversation that Russia considered Sri Lanka an old friend and ally, more..

May 27 (Xinhua) The Sri Lankan government said Tuesday that the Prevention of Terrorism Act and State of Emergency will be continued in the island for some time despite the conclusion of civil war. Nimal Siripala de Silva, majority leader of the House told parliament that though terrorism has been completely wiped out, terrorist activists are still at large prowling every corner of the country. more..

May 27 (LM) State-owned Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC) plans to expand its presence in Sri Lanka where government forces last week declared victory over Tamil rebels led by the LTTE, marking the end of a decades-old war. “We will pursue with the Sri Lankan government to expand our presence in the eastern part of the country in places such as Trincomalee,” K.R. Suresh Kumar, managing director of Lanka IOC Plc., an IOC subsidiary, told Mint over phone from Colombo. more..

May 27 (TM) The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau presented Her Majesty the Queen with a new hybrid orchid at last week's Chelsea Flower Show in London. The orchid was named Queen Elizabeth II in her honour. Sri Lanka is the home to more than 170 species of orchid, 74 of them found nowhere else in the world, and some flown over especially for this show. They were displayed as part of an exhibit by the Orchid Society of Great Britain, which gained a Gold Medal. more..

May 27 (M&G) History is littered with the ruined reputations of leaders who won a great military victory only to squander it by self-­congratulation and stupidity. Whether Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapakse, joins them is yet to be seen. There must be relief that the worst suffering of the quarter of a million Tamils trapped on the island's northern beaches is over. Cowering under government artillery fire, and shot by Tamil Tiger troops if they tried to flee, more..

May 27 (Reuters) More than 7,000 Tamil Tiger fighters have been questioned by judges as part of their rehabilitation following Asia's longest modern war, Sri Lanka's military said. After declaring victory over the separatist rebels last week, the government must now decide the fate of about 262,000 people, nearly all of whom fled the fighting. More than 210,000 are inside Manik Farm, the largest camp for war-displaced people in northern Sri Lanka. more..

May 27 (AP) The U.N.'s top human rights official demanded an independent investigation Tuesday into atrocities allegedly committed by both sides in Sri Lanka's civil war. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay told an emergency meeting of the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council that tens of thousands of civilians had been killed or injured in intense fighting between the government and Tamil rebels since December. more..

May 27 (TA) The Sri Lankan army will recruit an extra 100,000 soldiers to crush any attempt to revive the Tamil Tiger movement, triggering accusations the Government plans a military occupation of the Tamil-dominated north. The troop build-up, announced a week after President Mahinda Rajapakse declared victory in the 26-year civil war with the separatists, is likely to involve thousands of troops stationed in former LTTE territory. more..

May 27 (SG) In the wake of escalating atrocities in the Tamil/Sinhalese civil war in Sri Lanka, Maya met Maher on Friday night to explain her people's plight to Bill's Real Time audience. (She's the one labeled "Tamil Rapper.") There's a quick octo-mom joke with respect to M.I.A.'s very-pregnant Rap Pack Grammy performance, otherwise she's cast strictly as rebel ambassador. more..

May 27 (HP) Even seen from afar, the bloody end of Sri Lanka's 26-year old civil war is tragic and appalling. Large numbers of sick, starving, shell-shocked Tamil refugees are being herded into government security compounds. The number of civilian dead caused by the government's final offensive against the last Tamil Tiger redoubt is unknown, but estimates run 6,000-10,000. The government in Colombo blocks all journalists and human rights group from the region. more..

May 27 (LeN) SLMC leader Rauf Hakeem said in the parliament today (26) that the government and the opposition should jointly appeal from the IMF not to delay the US $ 1.9 billion loan requested to get rid of the balance of payment crisis. He said that this loan is urgent since the foreign reserves of the country have declined to 800 million dollars. Hakeem pointed out that the government could relax the draconian parts of emergency in the post conflict period and more..