Sri Lankan authorities have arrested five men who were deported from Saudi Arabia earlier today on suspicion of terrorism, including a man reported to have been behind the murder of two policemen in Batticaloa last year.

“These are the five remaining leaders of the April 21 terrorist group,” police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera told reporters, referring to the Easter Sunday attacks that killed more than 250 people.

The former mayor of Harrow, a London borough which is home to the largest population of Tamils in the UK, has been formally censured after she was found to have brought the council into disrepute by posing for photographs with senior Sri Lankan military officials.

India's National Intelligence Agency yesterday arrested a man over his reported links to one of Sri Lanka's Easter Sunday suicide bombers, Zahran Hashim. 

The suspect, 32-year-old Mohammad Azharuddin was arrested during a raid in Coimbatore. 

"One accused Md. Azharuddin r/o Coimbatore arrested by NIA in connection with ISIS in Tamilnadu.
Earlier, toady morning, NIA had conducted search at his place," the NIA tweeted. 

Residents in Batticaloa held a protest yesterday against the acquisition of Tamil land for ilmenite mining. 

The Easter Sunday bombers were funded by Sri Lankan state intelligence services, Azath Salley, a Muslim governor who resigned earlier this month. 

The Sri Lankan military thanked an Indian army delegation for providing training to Sri Lankan troops, as the military continues its international engagements despite continued allegations of rights abuses.

The European Union's delegation to Sri Lanka expressed concern today over the pressure being directed to the Muslim community. 

“Prejudiced and unsubstantiated allegations repeatedly published by media serve only to fuel intolerance,” the EU said in a statement endorsed by France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Romania, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Sri Lanka's prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe this week criticised a former governor for identifying himself as 'Muslim', stating that "everyone should identify themelves as 'Sri Lankans'." 

The Tamil National Alliance MP and Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi leader, Mavai Senathirajah this month reiterated the call for a political solution based on federalism. 

<p>Tamil refugee and torture survivor from Sri Lanka, Thiraviyarajah Subramaniyam, 37, has appealed to be allowed to join his sister in the UK, having been incarcerated in “hellish” conditions by the Australian authorities since 2013.</p> <p>Thiraviyarajah is suffering from serious mental health problems due to the torture he experienced in Sri Lanka followed by&nbsp;years spent in detention on Manus Island.</p>

Families of the disappeared in Vavuniya held a march calling on the Sri Lankan president to finally fulfil his promises to them.

Starting with a vigil at a church in the town, the families marched to their usual protest location.

Muslim ministers and governors who resigned from the front bences earlier this month today paid a visit to senior Buddhist clergy to explain their actions. 

A police constable from Kokkadicholai, who was reported missing in 2008, is believed to have been murdered and buried, the force's spokesperson said today. 

The discovery was made during a CID investigation into last year's police checkpoint killing at Vavuniyathivu by Islamist extremists. 

Three suspects have been arrested by the CID over the constable's murder, who is understood to have been shot dead on July 27, 2008. 

<p>Sri Lanka’s tourism sector, which remains badly impacted in the wake of the Easter Sunday attacks, has desperately tried to win back tourists by slashing prices reports Reuters.</p> <p>Scrapping a rule on minimum rates for hotel stays, government promotions and special fares from the state-owned SriLankan Airlines are all part of tactics being employed to revive Sri Lanka’s “battered tourism industry” Reuters said.</p>