The Sri Lankan military has built army camps on residential land that was reportedly released to displaced Tamils in Jaffna, reports Uthayan.

”Only less than 20% of the lands released are residential lands and there are army camps in 46 acres of land released,” said S Sukirthan, Vali North regional Council chairman, stating that the camps had been built in Varuthalaivilan.

Sri Lanka's military held several event's in the Vanni to 'celebrate' Tamil and Sinhala New Year, with civilians, including children, invited to take part.

The 66th and 663rd Brigades of the Security Forces Headquarters in Kilinochchi held an event each in Pooneryn (Poonakari) on the 8th and 10th of April. Major General A.P. De Z Wickramaratne, General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 66 Division was chief guest at both events. 

Famous Sinhala singers from the south graced the event in the Kiranchi playground, in the virtually exclusively Tamil town.

The British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland stated the Sri Lankan government will be “judged on their actions”, as she pledged support for the British Tamil community and called on Sri Lanka to co-operate with a UN investigation into the mass killings of Tamils.

“A huge tragedy unfolded in the closing days of the military conflict in Sri Lanka,” said Theresa Villiers. “A UN Report concluded that 70,000 civilians were killed in the final phase of the war and it has been estimated that nearly 150,000 still remain unaccounted for. The total loss of the life during the war will of course have been much greater.”

Calling on the Sri Lankan government to co-operate with the recently deferred UN investigation, Ms Villiers said,

“I welcome the undertakings the new President has given to lead a more democratic and accountable government, but his administration will be judged on their actions in delivering on these promises. We cannot yet tell whether this change of Government will lead to real and lasting change in Sri Lanka.”

India’s National Human Rights Commission ordered an investigation into the killing of 20 alleged sandalwood smugglers after hearing two testimonials on Monday.

The testimonies countered police claims that the alleged loggers were shot in an exchange last week, claiming instead that they were executed.

The police say that the killings took place when they challenged a group of 100 sandalwood smugglers who attacked them with axes and stones, reports the BBC.

The killings of the alleged smugglers, who were mostly Tamil, sparked mass protests in Tamil Nadu.

Sri Lanka will not start a domestic war crimes probe before September, said Deputy Foreign Minister Ajith Perera to Ceylon Today, despite President Maithripala Sirisena’s pledge last week to launch an inquiry in June.

The deputy minister said Sri Lanka would only present a report on the modalities on how such a domestic inquiry would be conducted at the UNHRC in September.

Mr Perera said the government achieved a “great diplomatic victory” in March this year, referring to the deferral of the OISL report until September.

"We made it clear to the UN that there was no need for an international inquiry and told that we have an independent judiciary and independent public service,” he said.

The leader of the Labour Party Ed Miliband has pledged to continue to push for a "full and independent international investigation" into war crimes in Sri Lanka, in a video message to the British Tamil community marking the Tamil New Year.

Thanking the British Tamil community for the "incredible contribution" it has made to the UK, the opposition leader said the Labour Party has always been "a friend of the Tamil community".

The Tamil Civil Society Forum (TCSF), a network of civil society groups in the North-East, welcomed the statement by the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, Pablo de Greiff, released on Saturday, following his visit to the island.

"We are pleased that Mr de Grieff has addressed many issues that was raised by TCSF in his meeting with him," the group said on its social media page on Monday.