Photograph: Forces Network
Sri Lankan soldiers have finished a course at a British military school this week, becoming the first Sri Lankan women to graduate from the Infantry Training Centre in Catterick, UK, despite concerns about rights abuses committed by Sri Lankan troops.
Tamil News
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Residents of Paddalipuram, Trincomalee protested on Thursday over the lack of teachers at the village schools.
The village, which falls under Muttur division, has experienced a shortage of teacher and educational support staff over a number of years...
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A Tamil detainee at Vavuniya prison died at the local hospital yesterday.
Kesavan Sasikumar, aged 41, had been receiving treatment for ill health.
He was arrested for alleged drugs smuggling.
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Despite calls to end their involvement in civilian life in the Tamil homeland, Sri Lankan troops held a Thai Pongal service at Oddusuddan temple on January 15.
Uniformed personnel from the 59th, 64th and 68th Divisions arranged the event and gave food and snacks to...
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Sri Lanka's Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) has arrested the deputy mayor of Akkaraipattu Municipal, Abdul Gaffoor Asmy on January 16.
Asmy was reportedly arrested for failing to comply with a TID arrest warrant.
Unverified reports suggest the TID was investigating him following an anonymous letter they received linking him to Islamic State and over his failure to repay debts.
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The French government is to meet with Sri Lankan authorities to clamp down on boat migration to Réunion, the Indian Ocean island which forms an overseas department and region of France.
In ten months, four boats from Sri Lanka have landed at Réunion carrying a total of 80 migrants. Some have been returned.
In the French Senate on Thursday, the senator for Réunion questioned the government on the issue and said, “beyond the human tragedy, the opening of this new migration route...
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The former president, Mahinda Rajapaksa today assumed duties as a Opposition Leader, despite calls from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to not to allow him to take up the post.
Rajapaksa commenced his duties following a religious ceremony with Buddhist monks.
The TNA had said the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) “cannot be considered as a party in Opposition since the Leader of the UPFA is the Head of Government and the Head of the Cabinet of Ministers” and wrote to...
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Sri Lanka's Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) has warned former LTTE cadre of the 'Rehabilitated Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam Party' against commemorating fallen cadre.
The party leader, Kanthasamy Inbarasa told reporters at a press conference yesterday at the Jaffna Press Club that the TID had issued a written...
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Photograph: Forces Network
Sri Lankan soldiers have finished a course at a British military school this week, becoming the first Sri Lankan women to graduate from the Infantry Training...
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The Sri Lankan army has announced that it will release three army farms in Mullaitivu.
The army said in a press release on Wednesday that a total of 1201.88 acres of state and private land, including Nachchikuda, Vellankulam and Udayarkattukulam army farms - totalling 120 acres - would be released next Monday.
The release would also cover 972 acres of state land in Kilinochchi, 46.11 acres of state land in Jaffna and Vanni, and 63.77 acres of private land in. Jaffna and Vanni,...
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The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu has condemned an incident involving the Sri Lankan navy which resulted in the drowning of an Indian fisherman.
In a statement, Chief Minister K Palaniswami said that fisherman K Muniasamy drowned when his boat capsized after being chased by the Sri Lankan navy. Eight other fishermen had also gone overboard but were rescued.
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The Sri Lankan army continued with its militarisation of Tamil schools in the North-East, by teaming up with university students from Moratuwa and handing out school accessories to Tamil schoolchildren in Jaffna last week.
Uniformed Sri Lankan troops accompanied students from the Rio Club of the...
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The Philippine president’s campaign against illegal drugs, which has been internationally condemned for its brutality, was praised by the Sri Lankan president yesterday.
Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena who is on a state visit to the Philippines this week said, “the war against crime and drugs carried out by you [President Duterte] is an example to the whole world, and personally to me. Drug menace is rampant in my country and I feel that we should follow your footsteps to...
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Students and staff at the University of Jaffna today remembered the 18th anniversary of the 'Pongu Thamil' uprising.
Gathering by the Pongu Thamil declaration monument on the university campus grounds, students and staff remembered the widespread uprising calling for Tamil self-determination.
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Residents from a border village in Vavuniya, Iranai Iluppaikkulam, protested yesterday against the authorities' failure to ensure a permanent doctor at the local hospital.
Demanding that a permanent doctor be appointed, residents protested...
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A Tamil man has been arrested in Germany over accusations he was involved in the 2005 assassination of Sri Lanka's foreign minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, AP reports.
The man, 39-year-old Navanithan G, was also allegedly a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
He was arrested on Wednesday in southwestern Germany.
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Sri Lanka's senior Buddhist clergy, known as the Maha Sangha, have urged the government to make sure it seeks their blessings and approval prior to make any constitutional changes.
Despite the UNP led government's repeated assurances to the Buddhist clergy that Buddhism would continue to hold the foremost position in the constitution, clergy members cast doubt over the government's intentions in making any alterations.
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British Tamils at the Houses of Parliament this week, celebrating Thai Pongal
Thai Pongal celebrations took place across Britain this week, with parliamentarians and other politicians from across the political spectrum praising the contribution of the British Tamil community and pledging to continue work...
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The international community must “press the government” in Colombo to ensure action is taken on justice for abuses, said Human Rights Watch (HRW), stating that stalling reforms had been further threatened by political instability on the island.
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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami announced his decision at a Tamil Nadu legislative assembly earlier this month to carve the Kallakurichi district out of the Villupuram district, effectively creating the 33rd district of the state.
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The Sri Lankan president signed a series of deals including on military exchange with the Philippines on Wednesday.
The deals were signed during bilateral talks in Manila with the president of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte.
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Officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are to visit Sri Lanka next month in view of talks to resume its program.
“We agreed that a strong policy mix, with effective implementation of that agenda, is key to strengthening confidence, while putting Sri Lanka on a sustainable, high-quality growth path that would benefit its people," the IMF managing director, Christine Lagarde said in a statement following a meeting with Sri Lanka's finance minister, Mangala Samaraweera in...
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Families of the disappeared in Vavuniya held a rally on Tuesday urging the United States and European Union to push the Sri Lankan government to provide answers over the whereabouts of their loved ones.
Holding the US and EU flag, protesters urged action,...
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The Tamil festival of Thai Pongal was marked in parliament in Denmark on Monday with the minister of culture joining Danish Tamils to celebrate.
Celebrations included dances and the making of traditional pongal (sweet rice).
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The chief investigator at the Mannar mass grave confirmed that the number of bodies excavated has now reached 300, as the toll from the island’s largest mass grave site continues to grow.
Judicial Medical Officer Dr S Rajapaksa confirmed the new figure as excavation work continues, with the area they are now investigating expanded. Work began at the grave site in May last year.
The remains of at least 23 children have been identified amongst the bodies discovered so far, with...
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A Sri Lankan brigadier who was caught on video threatening Tamil protestors in London faces court proceedings, after a private prosecution was brought against him.
Brigadier Priyanka Fernando was filmed motioning a death threat to Tamils in London last month, running his...
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Today marks 26 years since the death of Sathasivam Krishnakumar alias Colonel Kittu, and nine other LTTE cadres, who committed suicide after being surrounded by Indian navy warships in 1993.
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The Bank of China has offered Sri Lanka a loan of US $300 million, which could be increased up to a total of US $1 billion, as Sri Lanka struggles to regain international confidence following last year's political crisis, Reuters reported.
The news wire cited a source as saying Colombo was considering the offer due to "difficulty in borrowing money after recent rating downgrades".
Sri Lanka plunged into crisis last October after the president replaced the prime minister and...
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The Tamil festival of Thai Pongal was celebrated around the world and across the Tamil homeland on Tuesday.
The secular festival gives thanks to the sun and for the harvest, and dates back in its current form to at least as far back as the Medieval Chola empire.
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Canada’s prime minister Justice Trudeau recognised the “many contributions Tamil Canadians have made to the success and prosperity of our country,” as he marked Thai Pongal this week.
“This week, the Tamil community in Canada and around the world will celebrate Thai Pongal, the four-day harvest festival,”said a statement from the prime minister’s office.
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The Sri Lankan navy announced that it had recovered the body of a dead Indian fisherman that it had discovered off the coast of Neduntheevu in Jaffna on Sunday.
The man has been identified as 55-year-old Karuppaiah Munnasami from Ramanathapuram in India.
His body was reportedly handed over to the Jaffna police, with it still being unclear how the man had died.
World News
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Israeli authorities have handed a Palestinian family an eviction notice demanding they leave their home in Occupied East Jerusalem.
The Sabbagh family was handed a notice on January 12th and given until January 23 to leave their homes. On Tuesday however, authorities agreed to suspend the eviction until a final decision was reached within a month.
The Sabbagh family numbers 45 people, including five Sabbagh brothers, their wives, children and grandchildren. Amongst them is 31-...
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Protests in Sudan calling for the resignation of President Bashir have resulted in the death of a doctor and a child.
Protests occurred in several cities across Sudan on Thursday but police were reported to have fired tear gas and live ammunition on demonstrates who tried to march on the presidential palace, in the capital, Khartoum.
The death of the doctor and child was first reported by the Sudan Doctors' Committee, a group linked to the opposition. The death has also since...
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The Afghan Taliban has warned the United States that it will withdraw from peace negotiations if they refuse to withdraw from Afghanistan, a central demand from the Islamist group throughout the 17 year conflict.
The warning comes a day after the Taliban reportedly attacked a compound in Kabul city killing five and wounding more than 110.
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The Indonesian government has denied its military used white phosphorus in West Papua, following a report published in an Australian paper detailing the unverified use of the chemical weapon against civilians this month.
According to the paper the attack occurred in the region of Nduga in West Papua. Photographic evidence published shows a villager with severe burns and a wounded leg, which has been attributed to use of white phosphorus.
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The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has called on Bahrain to release the family members of prominent exiled activist, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, an outspoken critic of the Bahraini government who now lives in Britain.
A report released by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention stated that the three relatives were being held because of their kinship to Alwadaei. Alwadaei’s brother in law, Sayed Nizar Alwadaei, his mother in law, Hajar Mansoor Hassan and...
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Five Israeli teenagers have been accused of stoning to death a Palestinian mother.
Aisha Rabi, a Palestinian mother of nine, was travelling by car with her husband and two daughters when she was struck on the head by a stone. She died near the settlement of Rehelim, in the occupied West Bank, on October 12.
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Nigeria’s security forces conducted a raid on the headquarters and three offices of the country’s Daily Trust newspaper in Maiduguri on Sunday, arresting two journalists, and seizing their laptops and mobile phones.
Uthman Abubakar, the north east regional editor and Ibrahim Sawab were both arrested during the raid. The Daily Trust is one of Nigeria’s largest newspapers. Sawab was released later that day, but Abubakhar remains in military custody with his location unknown.
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Myanmar’s authorities have ordered their army to launch operations to crack down on an ethnic Rakhine insurgent group after deadly attacks last week in the Rakhine state.
The Arakan Army (AA), an armed ethnic group fighting for more autonomy, carried out raids on four police posts in the town Buthidaung, North Rakhine. The attack took place on Myanmar’s Independence Day, leaving 13 police officers dead and nine injured.
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The United States House of Reprasentatives on Friday passed a bill separating Western Sahara’s aid from its programme in Morocco on Friday.
The new bill outlines language on Western Sahara in a separate section to Morocco. Previously text on aid for the region was covered under the remit of Moroccan aid.
Responding to the new US legislation on aid to the Western Sahara and Morocco, the Polisario Front envoy to Washington, said,
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Soldiers have attempted to take control in Gabon in an attempted coup, as the ruling president, Ali Bongo, remains abroad receiving medical treatment for a reported stroke.
Seizing control of national state radio, Lieutenant Kelly Ondo Obiang, urged people to "rise up", with the message being carried on state television and social media.
AFP reported shots were heard close to the radio station, situated in the centre of Libreville.
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A US Navy Special Operations Chief is accused of breaking international law by indiscriminating killing Iraqi civilians and nearly a dozen other crimes, including stabbing to death a 15-year-old prisoner.
Edward Gallagher has pleaded not guilty when appearing at a hearing in San Diego’s naval base on Friday, with his official trial set to begin on February 19.
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More than three million women formed a 385-mile human chain in the state of Kerala in southern India this week, as they protested against a temple policy that banned admission for women.
The chain stretched from the northern tip of the state in Kasaragod to the southern end in Thiruvanthapuram. The protest was organised by Kerala’s left-wing coalition government on Thursday however the disputes on this issue have been going on for three months.
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Demonstrations have been taking place in different regions of Sudan over the last month, including the capital Khartoum, calling on Omar al Bashir to resign as the country’s president.
The deadliest of the protests took place on Monday 31st December, as Sudanese security forces fired tear gas and bullets at demonstrators in Khartoum, who marched towards the President’s palace. Schools and universities across Sudan have been shut and state of emergency has been declared in some regions...
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An independence movement in southern Yemen has led growing calls for a referendum on secession in the south of the country, as conflict continues in what has been termed a modern “humanitarian disaster”.
The call for Yemen to separate from the north and western provinces has gained popularity in the South with groups stating that they will defend their land but has not be addressed by the international community.
The Southern Transitional Council (STC), a group which was...
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The United Nations reports that 85 former FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia) rebels have been killed since the signing of the peace agreement with the Columbian government in 2016.
UN Secretary General, António Guterres, notes that 14 ex-members of FARC were “murdered” within the last three months. The majority of these deaths fell in areas formerly occupied by FARC and where there is little state apparatus. This has allowed for other militant groups and reported drug...
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The Taliban has orchestrated a series of attacks killing at least 27 security officers and wounding dozens in northern Afghanistan.
Most of this violence was concentrated in the Sar-i-Pul Province where three attacks occurred killing 21 people. The Taliban have also attacked the centre of Sayad District, the village Qashqari, and security outposts along the highway linking Sar-i-Pul with Jowzjan. They were able to capture two of these outposts, wounding 25 security force members in...
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The Nigerian military has responded to charges of unjustifiably killing Shiite protesters on the outskirts of the capital Abuja, with senior officials defending the military's actions.
In their response they cite US President Donald Trump’s remarks regarding migrants heading towards the American border, stating, “they want to throw rocks at our military, our military fights back”.
Footage released by the New York Times however reveals that the soldiers were unprovoked and...
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A suicide bombing in Kandahar, Afghanistan, has killed a separatist commander who was wanted for organising a suicide bombing attack against the Chinese Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan.
No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing that took his life.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack on the Chinese Consulate last month asserting that Beijing is an “oppressor” and that would not tolerate “China's military expansionism on Baloch...
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Chinese police has detained a number of students protesting over the take over of their Marxist society by university officials and members of the student association, following the detention of the leader of their society on the birthday of Chairman Mao.
Whilst the Chinese government supposedly supports the legacy of Chairman Mao, they have continued to crackdown on student organisations and recent graduates who have aligned themselves with labour activists, supporting factory...
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Syria’s state agencies reported that its army entered the Kurdish-held city of Manbij, on the invitation of the Kurdish YPG to protect it from a threatened Turkish offensive.
However US military officials and some locals have refuted the claim.
The New York Times said the move came as Kurds felt “betrayed” by the United States’ decision to withdraw from Syria and that the “request amounted to a United States ally [Kurds] calling on an enemy of the United States [Syrian...
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French investigators have dropped charges against nine Rwandan officials, including former defense minister James Kabarebe, who were suspected of playing a role in the 1994 plane crash which killed President Juvenal Habyarimana’s plane alongside the French crew.
The crash preceded the Rwandan genocide against the Tutsi minority which saw an estimated 800,000 people killed.
The investigation was dropped citing a lack of sufficient evidence.
Rwandan government officials... -
Russia has sent over one dozen fighter jets to Belbek military base in the Ukrainian region of Crimea, which it has occupied since its annexation in 2014.
Witnesses told Reuters that they had seen Su-27 and Su-30 fighter jets arrive in the air base on December 22.
The United States, United Kingdom and Lithuania have offered military assistance to Ukraine against the onset of Russian advances.
The US State Department offered to provide an additional US $10 million to...
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A former Serbian police chief and current official within the ruling Progressive Party, Goran Radosavljevic, has been banned from entering the United States due to allegations of human rights abuse.
In a statement the US State Department announced that they were publicly designating Radosavljevic under Section 7031(c) of the FY 2018 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Act.
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Four imprisoned Catalan leaders who are currently on a hunger strike have sent letters to over 40 European heads of state, calling for their case be heard by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).
The four leaders, Jordi Sànchez, Jordi Turull, Josep Rull and Joaquim Forn, alongside 14 other separatist activists face accusations of engaging in rebellion, sedition, disobedience, and the misuse of public funds.
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Zimbabwe's post-election violence, following the victory of Emmerson Mnangagwa, which included the use of live bullets, has been criticised as "disproportionate and unjustified" by an investigation launched by the government.
The investigation, headed by the former South African President, Kgalema Motlante noted the “deaths of these six people and injuries sustained by the 35 others arose from the actions of the military and the police”.
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The Nigerian military has released a statement calling for the suspension of operations carried out by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in the North East of Nigeria, accusing the organisation of having terrorist sympathies.
The statement was signed off by Onyema Nwachukwu, a colonel and deputy director public relations however, it remains unclear whether the military gained the permission of President Muhammadu Buhari before making this declaration...
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A statue of Mohandas K Gandhi has been removed from the Legon campus on the University of Ghana in Accra on Tuesday night.
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The US Senate approved a resolution calling for an end to United States military support in the Saudi-UAE led campaign in Yemen.
The final vote was 56-41 with seven Republicans defying their party by voting in support of the motion on Thursday.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, a Republican Senator who sponsored the resolution said,
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Chile announced this weekend it would be pulling out of the UN Migration Pact.
The pact, whilst non-binding, offers guidance on how to protect migrants, help them integrate into society, and to help them return to their home countries when it no longer poses a risk.
So far 150 nations have agreed to be signatories of the pact.
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Israel has become the 38th member of FATF (Financial Action Task Force), a Paris-based international organisation which aims to tackle issues of money laundering and terrorism financing.
Israel has stated that it has been an observer in the organisation since February 2016 but has now decided to follow up with membership after “successful mutual evaluation”. This would allow it a voice in setting the rules and agenda.