Foreign nationals wishing to travel to the North will need prior permission from the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development, the Sri Lankan military's spokesperson, Ruwan Wanigasuriya told reporters on Wednesday.
"Foreigners who wish to visit the North either as tourists or in connection with some projects should inform the Ministry of Defence about the nature of the proposed visit and the area they intend visiting and obtain its prior permission to do so," Wanigasuriya was quotes as saying in Sinhala, by the Daily Mirror.
Written permission can be sought by writing to the Ministry ahead of the visit, he said. The move will include much of the Tamil diaspora, who fled as refugees and now live abroad.
"This was being done to prevent foreigners who visit the North under the pretext of being involved in development projects but were engaged in promoting communal disharmony and thus posing a serious threat to national security," Wanigasuriya added, whilst stating that "no foreigner was debarred from visiting the North".
On Friday, the government banned all foreign nationals from entering the North, stating that their presence posed a risk to President Rajapaksa who was visiting Jaffna.
Several diaspora Tamils, returning to visit family and friends, were turned away at Omanthai check point by the military.
"Foreigners who wish to visit the North either as tourists or in connection with some projects should inform the Ministry of Defence about the nature of the proposed visit and the area they intend visiting and obtain its prior permission to do so," Wanigasuriya was quotes as saying in Sinhala, by the Daily Mirror.
Written permission can be sought by writing to the Ministry ahead of the visit, he said. The move will include much of the Tamil diaspora, who fled as refugees and now live abroad.
"This was being done to prevent foreigners who visit the North under the pretext of being involved in development projects but were engaged in promoting communal disharmony and thus posing a serious threat to national security," Wanigasuriya added, whilst stating that "no foreigner was debarred from visiting the North".
On Friday, the government banned all foreign nationals from entering the North, stating that their presence posed a risk to President Rajapaksa who was visiting Jaffna.
Several diaspora Tamils, returning to visit family and friends, were turned away at Omanthai check point by the military.