Defending Sri Lanka's opposition to the UN inquiry into mass atrocities, the country's minister of external affairs, GL Peiris, reiterated that Sri Lanka "will not kneel down before any powerful nation and compromise the national interests", reported the DailyMirror.lk.

One man has been killed and another injured during a hit and run incident near a Sri Lankan navy base in Mullaitivu, when a Sri Lankan military tractor crashed into a motorcycle on 2 August.

The military personnel driving the tractor ran away from the scene immediately after the crash, reported the Uthayan newspaper.

The deceased, a 24 year old father named Arugmugam Sivakumar, was found unconscious, trapped between the wheel of the tractor. He was admitted to Jaffna Teaching Hospital however succumbed to his injuries.

Students at Sabaragamuwa University, in the island's south, protest against arrest. Photograph BBC Tamil

Asylum seekers who were deported by Australia after their boat came into difficulty at sea as they fled Sri Lanka, have faced abuse with beatings and interrogations on return, the Guardian newspaper reports.

The group of 41 asylum seekers, including children, were taken to a Sri Lankan navy camp, where almost 100 Criminal Investigation Division (CID) officials were waiting for them the newspaper reported.

The Sri Lankan navy is to appropriate 617 acres of land in Mullaitivu in order to build a navy base, the Northern Provincial Council's deputy speaker said this week.

Despite locals holding land deeds for the area, an announcement stating the land is to be appropriated as the original owners have not been identified, Jeganathan said, appealing to the Chief Minister to act.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa reiterated the government’s position that the three international experts appointed to advise the presidential commission on disappearances do not have the mandate to hold investigations.

Speaking to Sri Lankan media on Tuesday, the president added that the government was considering expanding the international advisory committee to six.

External Affairs Minister GL Peiris said at the press briefing that Sri Lanka rejected outright paragraph 10 of the UNHRC resolution passed in March this year, which called for an international investigation into war crimes.