<p>Responding to a petition signed by over 10,000 British citizens calling for Sri Lanka to be referred to the International Criminal Court, the UK government said that "international criminal justice and accountability is a fundamental element", however maintained that the UN Human Rights Council resolutions were the best way of acheiving accountability.&nbsp;</p>

The Sri Lankan army announced that it had launched a football workshop with Tamil schoolchildren in Mulllaitivu, despite calls for the armed forces to withdraw from civilian activities in the heavily militarised region.

The United States said it was “pleased” that Sri Lanka’s political crisis had taken a step towards resolution with the reinstatement of Ranil Wickremesinghe, and noted that “we look forward to engaging” with the reappointed prime minister.

US State Department spokesman Robert Palladino stated that “Sri Lanka is a valued partner in the Indo-Pacific, and we look forward to engaging with Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and his cabinet to advance cooperation on bilateral and regional issues of common interest”.

His comments were echoed by US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Alaina Teplitz who tweeted,

<p>Sri Lanka’s rupee continued to fall this week, as the fallout from Colombo’s political crisis continued to dent sentiment, reports Reuters.</p> <p>“Political paralysis remained the main concern for investors,” added Reuters, who reported that dealers also pointed to a delay in appointing cabinet ministers contributing to the weakening rupee.</p> <p>The fall comes despite the reappointment of Ranil Wickremesinghe as Sri Lanka’s prime minister, after almost two months of political turmoil which saw the dissolution of parliament, widespread reports of bribery and parliamentary violence.</p>

Residents in Iralkuli and Navaladdy villages in Muthur, Trincomalee have condemned the failure of local authorities to protect locals from destruction by elephants and other wild animals. 

Residents protested outside the Muthur Divisional Secretariat Office on Monday, accusing authorities of ignoring their request for a fence to be erected to stop elephants from entering the villages. 

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader, R Sampanthan questioned the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as Sri Lanka's opposition leader yesterday, arguing that he had never been removed from the post by the Speaker, Karu Jayasuriya and that move raised the questioned whether Sri Lanka was becoming a failed state. 

Sampanthan, who had held the post of opposition leader until the president's attempt to dissolve parliament on November 9, told parliament today the country had two opposition leaders. 

Yesterday the Jayasuriya appointed Rajapaksa as the Leader of the Opposition. 

Addressing parliament, Sampanthan said: 

Skeletal remains uncovered at the mass grave site in Mannar were sent for carbon dating in Florida, USA on Tuesday. 

The excavation and carbon dating process is being over seen by the Judicial Medical Officer, Shaminda Rajapaksa. 

<p>As Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena continue to whip up nationalist Sinhala Buddhist sentiment, there “may be more theatrics to come” in Sri Lanka, warned The Economist on Tuesday.</p> <p>Stating it was “reassuring to see democracy prevail”, it praised the curbing of Sirisena’s attempt to “expand executive power”, adding that it was for many, “satisfying to watch the lushly mustachioed former strongman, Mahinda Rajapaksa, exit the stage with a scowl”.</p>

The newly appointed commander for the Sri Lankan army in the East started his posting by visiting three different senior Buddhist monks in the region in order to pay his “high regard”, reports an official military website.

A commemoration event was held in London this week, to mark 12 years since the passing of Anton Balasingham, the chief political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).