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Fishermen in Mannar examine their wrecked boats.
Tens of thosuands of people across the North-East have been impacted by Cyclone Burevi as it slammed into the island this week, leaving homes destroyed, scores displaced and at least one person missing.
Wind speeds reached up to 90 kilometres per hour with rainfall exceeding 200mm in the affected areas as the cyclone hit and moved towards Tamil Nadu.
Tamil News
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The 36th anniversary of the massacre of 32 Tamils in Othiyamalai, Mullaitivu, by the Sri Lankan army in 1984 was remembered on Wednesday.
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Sri Lanka’s police spokesperson DIG Ajith Rohana said that the power to issue detention orders for suspects arrested on terrorism-related activities should be granted to the security services instead of to the courts, as he called for harsher laws and a greater role of powers for the police.
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Batticaloa District representatives from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) visited the Mylanthanaimadu-Periya Maadhavanai grazing and agricultural area to discuss the issues of the disputed land last week, as local Tamils continued to express fears over increasing Sinhala colonisation.
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UK Minister for Asia at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Nigel Adams, expressed concerns the government had over Sri Lanka’s continued “harassment of civil society” and “militarisation of civilian functions”.
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Responding to questions posed by UK Shadow Justice Minister, Lyn Brown, over the government’s assessment of Keenie Meenie Services war crimes in Sri Lanka and continued police training, Britain’s government has asserted that they are taking allegations of war crimes “very seriously” whilst also defending training provided by the Scottish police.
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Speaking in parliament, Nigel Adams, Minister for Asia at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development, expressed concern over anti-Muslim sentiment in Sri Lanka.
This was during a discussion on attacks on religious freedom during the COVID-19 pandemic, Adams stated:
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11 prisoners were killed and over 100 injured when Sri Lankan prison guards opened fire at Mahara prison, near Colombo, during unrest on 29 November.
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The Supreme Court dismissed all petitions filed against Sri Lanka's forced cremation policy of Muslim COVID-19 victims, according to the Daily FT.
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An...
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Following Cyclone Nivar last week, Cyclone Burevi is expected to make landfall late on Wednesday with winds up to 56mph. Tens and thousands of people have had to leave their homes as rainfall of up to 200mm is predicted in some areas, which will lead to flash floods.
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The fourth trilateral National Security was held in Colombo on the 28 November and led by Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister, Dinesh Gunawardena, as well as accused war criminals, Kamal Gunaratne, now Defence Secretary, and Shavendra Silva, head of Sri Lanka’s army.
The trilateral National Security Adviser meeting discussed issues of Maritime Security Cooperation between India, Sri Lanka and the...
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Sri Lanka’s archaeology department has issued a gazette acquiring an acre of land in Neduntheevu (Delft island) in Jaffna, claiming that it contains a ruined Buddhist monastery complex.
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British police have reportedly ordered the removal of the Tamil Eelam national flag and a photograph of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran from a supermarket in Wembley, London.
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UofT signing agreement with Toronto Tamil Chair Team
The University of Toronto (UofT) has agreed to establish a ground breaking Tamil Chair, after signing an agreement with the Tamil Congress and Tamil Chair Inc. in 2018. The Chair has received an outpour of community support and will be first of its kind in Canada...
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A Tamil asylum-seeking family...
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Tamils in Switzerland marked Maaveerar Naal on Firday, with a series of commemorations from across the country.
See photographs from various events below.
Zurich
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A fire broke out on saturday at the Mahara Prison, after Sri Lankan officers opened fire in a reported attempt to control a riot in the prison. At least eight inamates have been killed and 52 injured.
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National Security Adviser Ajit Doval met with Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader R Sampanthan last week during his visit to the island to discuss developement.
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Tamils in Denmark commemorated Maaveerar Naal on November 27, paying homage to those who gave their lives in the struggle for liberation.
The event took place in Herning where Tamils lit candles and laid flowers as they paid their respects to the fallen. The event also included a series of performances.
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Responding to a question on Maaveerar Naal, Jaffna MP C V Wigneswaran accused Sri Lanka of committing "state terrorism" and maintained that "our youth were compelled to take up arms for the self-defense of our people".
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Sri Lankan police arrested a Jaffna University student for lighting a lamp for the Tamil Hindu festival of Karthika Vilakkeedu amidst a crackdown of the festival by police and the Sri Lankan military for its proximity to Maaveerar Naal.
Police said they arrested the student based on information they received that he was trying to pay tribute to fallen LTTE fighters, and had brought the student to the police station to obtain a confession.
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Sri Lankan military and police have threatened a temple in Jaffna against marking the Tamil Hindu festival of lights, Karthikai Vilakkeedu today, due to the festival’s proximity in date to Maaveerar Naal, and the festival tradition of lighting lamps and tolling bells resemblance of Maaveerar...
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The Tamil vote in the North-East has fractured after the ‘slump’ of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), said The Economist this week, however noted that there were areas of unity and said Tamil parliamentarians will have more areas of co-operation to come as the Sri Lankan govenrment embraces Sinhala chauvinist policies.
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A Tamil journalist has been arrested by the Sri Lankan Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) this morning, over allegations that he had he published pictures of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Facebook.
The journalist, identified locally as Gokulan, was arrested on Sunday morning at his home in Batticaloa. Gokulan is a photographer who...
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Across the United States of America, several Maveerar Naal commemoration events were held on November 27th.
See photographs form the various events below.
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Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa ordered the commencement of ‘Pirith’ chanting and the distribution of over 700 Buddha statues among temples across the island last week, in...
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Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian, M A Sumanthiran highlighted the discrimination faced by Tamils in their right to remember those who gave their lives in the struggle for liberation, in a fiery exchange in the Sri Lankan parliament.
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Tamils in cities and homes across Germany marked Maaveerar Naal on November 27, 2020.
See photographs from events below.
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Hundreds of Tamils and non-Tamil allies took to Instagram yesterday to assert their determination to mark Maaveerar Naal and to remember the fallen fighters of the Tamil liberation struggle despite many contemporary obstacles such as censorship, the global pandemic and state crackdowns against memorialisation in the Tamil homeland.
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With Maaveerar Naal this week, British Tamil organisations spoke on the importance of the day and why it is commemorated.
World News
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Thousands of Rohingya are being shipped to a remote island by the Bangladesh government says refugees and humanitarian workers, despite government assurances that no one is being forced to leave.
More than 1,600 Rohingya refugees were sent to Bhasan Char, a flood prone island today, despite the government asserting that they were only moving the Rohingya who were willing to go as a measure to relieve overcrowing in camps. The camps have become home to over a million Rohingya as they...
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China is considering drafting a blacklist of “die-hard” supporters of Taiwan’s independence as Beijing may take legal steps against democratically-elected President Tsai Ing-wen.
Reuters reported that Taiwan condemned the plan after pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao first reported it this month. China’s Global Times tabloid...
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France’s interior minister, Gerald Darmanin, ordered an internal police investigation after officers were filmed throwing migrants out of tents while evacuating a protest camp in Paris on Tuesday.
The police were caught by journalists and activists shaking migrants inside tents until they tumbled out and resistors were abused by batons, according to the head of aid group Doctors Without Borders, Corinne Torre.
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At least 600 people have been killed in Mai Kadara massacre in Ethiopia, in the Tigray region, forcing tens of thousands to cross the Tekeze River and seek shelter in Sudan.
An estimated 30,000 refugees have decided to make this journey.
“It took twelve days to get here,” said one relieved looking refugee. “We had to...
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A barrage of rocket attacks in residential areas in Kabulon Saturday, killed at least eight and wounded more than 30 people, according to Afghan officials.
The interior ministry reported that over a dozen rockets were launched from a pickup truck inside the city which the regional Islamic State group confessed to organising.
The Islamic State group has been behind other attacks that have happened recently in Kabul., including two assaults on education institutions that killed...
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On the anniversary of the Nuremberg trials, UK Ambassador, Neil Bush, speaking at the OSCE Permanent Council, reiterated Britain’s aims of bringing to “impunity for the worst crimes”.
The Nuremberg trials were a series of trials held in the aftermath of the Second World War and in the wake of the Holocaust. Ambassador Bush notes that they were the “first of their...
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The United Nations has urged Egypt to release three members of an activist group arrested within days of each other as international pressure abounds.
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The victory of Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) at Myanmar’s elections has been heralded as evidence of support for the country’s “nascent democracy” in defiance of the half-century military dictatorship. -
Australian special forces were allegedly involved in the murder of 39 Afghan civilians according to damning report.
For over four years, Maj Gen Justice Paul Brereton investigated allegations that a small group within the elite Special Air Services brutally murdered Afghan civilians, allegedly slitting throats, gloating about the murders, keeping kill counts, and photographing bodies with phones and weapons they planted on them to justify their actions.
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Thousands of people joined Thai students in a protest calling for education reforms as a part of wider calls for government removal.
High school students are seeking greater freedom and fairer treatment within an education system which currently instills obedience. Protesters have three core demands: the removal of Prayuth Chan-ocha as prime minister, a new constitution and reforms to the monarchy of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
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The leader of pro-independence group, Polisario Front, in the Western Sahara declared war on Morocco last week following border confrontation.
The announcement came a day after Morocco reportedly launched a military operation in a United Nations buffer zone after accusing the pro-independence group of blocking access to Mauritania.
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Aung San Suu Kyi has won enough parliamentary seats to form the next government in Myanmar while the military backed opposition has called for a new vote.
Ms Suu Kyi's party, National League for Democracy (NLD) has secured 346 seats, more than the 322 needed to secure a majority. According to Myanmar's...
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The Afghan Taliban denied responsibility for an attack on Kabul University earlier this month, as they called on the US to ensure that an agreement that sees American troops withdrawn from the country by netx year.
“The Islamic Emirate would like to stress to the new American president-elect and future administration that...
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The United States has imposed sanctions on top Lebanese politician and Christian ally of Hezbollah, Gebran Bassil, for alleged corruption. The sanction blocks Bassil's ability to hold assets and carry out financial transactions in the US.
Bassil has served in multiple high-level posts in the Lebanese government, including as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Minister of Energy and Water, and Minister of Telecommunications.
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In a letter sponsored by over 60 parliamentarians from 16 countries, the International Criminal Court has been urged to hold China accountable for the on-going genocide of Uighur Muslim and persecution of other Turkish peoples.
The Guardian has described the on-going persecution of the Uighurs as “an early test case of the human...
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UN Human Rights Lawyer, Emma Reilly, an employee for the UN Human Rights Council has accused the UN of complicity in the Uighur genocide; maintaining, on LBC radio, that high ranking officials handed over the name of Uighur dissidents directly to the Chinese government.
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Vice President Kamala Harris after her and Joe Biden’s election victory, saying he is “confident that the vibrant India-US ties will get even stronger with [her] support and leadership.”
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Joe Biden has been elected as the next President of the United States after beating Donald Trump in a tightly contested election, following a count that stretched on for days after polls had closed.
The closest electoral victory in recent memory will see Biden take up office in January 2021, with Kamala Harris the first Black woman and the first Tamil...
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Twitter has marked a series of tweets from current US president Donald Trump as “disputed and might be misleading,” as a tightly contested election count continues today.
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Thousands of women are protesting across the nation against Poland’s latest abortion ruling, despite COVID-19 restrictions limiting public gatherings.
On October 22 the coutnry's constitutional court ruled that ending the life of a deformed foetus is unconstitutional, an almost total ban allowing terminations only in cases of rape or...
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Rwandan genocide suspect, Félicien Kabuga, 84, has been transferred into detention at The Hague to face trial for his alleged participation during the 1994 genocide of thousands of Tutsis in Rwanda.
He was on the run for over two decades until he was arrested in France in May. The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, which handles outstanding war crimes cases for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, is due to try the former tea and coffee tycoon....
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During US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo’s, visit to India earlier this week, he emphasised the “strong and growing bilateral relationships with India” whilst also condemning China’s Communist Party, stating;
"The CCP is no friend to democracy, the rule of law, transparency, nor to freedom of navigation — the foundation of...
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Samuel Paty, a French teacher was beheaded last Friday near Paris after sharing caricatures of Islam's Prophet Muhammad with his class. The suspect, 18-year-old Chechen man, was shot dead by police.
The images were part of a lesson on freedom of speech held in October. The controversial cartoons were originally published by the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in 2012. And were cited as the motivation behind the killing of 12 people by Islamist extremists at the magazine's offices.
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Amnesty International has reported that 12 people have been killed during peaceful protests against police brutality in Lagos, Nigeria.
69 people have been killed by Nigeria’s security forces whilst protesting police brutality since October,
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Chinese officials have warned the US that they will detain Americans if the Justice Department prosecutes Chinese scholars who are affiliated with the Chinese military, The New York Times reported.
US law enforcement officials report that five recently arrested Chinese scholars did not disclose their military affiliations on their visa applications, therefore accusing that China may be...
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Thailand authorities have ordered internet providers to block Telegram, a messaging app, which has been used by pro-democracy protesters.
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Bolivia’s elections on Sunday saw the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS), claim a victory after securing 52.4 per cent of the vote, according to exit polls.
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The Standing Committee of China’s congress passed amendments to a law which will criminalise insulting the national flag and emblem.
The amendment which will come into effect on January 1, 2021, will criminalise those who intentionally burn, paint, deface, discard or display the flag upside down and will be prone to investigation for criminal responsibility.
Amendments to the law were proposed after pro-democracy protestors in Hong Kong last year desecrated the Chinese flag...
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China and Russia's appointment as members of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has caused outrage amongst human rights campaigners. It "is like making a gang of arsonists into the fire brigade”, commented UN Watch, a Geneva-based monitoring group.
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Allegations of systematic violence against a local community in Kenya by guards working for an avocado farm, Kakuzi, that supplies UK supermarkets have resulted in a lawsuit against the farm’s British parent company, Camellia. 79 claims of “extreme violence”, dating from 2009 to January 2020 were found. Claimants include former employees of Kakuzi.