The British Foreign Office Minister for Asia, Hugo Swire met and discussed the “importance of Sri Lanka making progress on reconciliation and accountability,” with Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister, Mangala Samaraweera, on Tuesday, the British Foreign office announced.

Recalling his visit to “Jaffna and Colombo”, Mr Swire said,

The Northern Provincial Council passed a resolution today calling on the UN inquiry to investigate the genocide of the Tamil people by the Sri Lankan government and recommend appropriate measures for the International Criminal Court, stating that the Tamil people have no faith in domestic commission.

The resolution, tabled by the chief minister of the province, Justice C V Wigneswaran, was passed with an overwhelming majority around 9.30am local time.

"This resolution provides as overview of the evidence demonstrating successive Sri Lankan governments' genocide against Tamils, and respectfully requests the ongoing United Nations Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Investigation on Sri Lanka (OISL) to investigate the claim of genocide and recommend appropriate investigations and prosecutions by the International Criminal Court (ICC)," the resolution read.

Stating that the "Tamils have no hope for justice in any domestic Sri Lankan mechanism, whether conducted by the Rajapaksa regime, Sirisena regime, or its successor" the resolution called for justice and accountability for the Tamil genocide "to be driven and carried out by the international community".

The Tamil Nadu government stated it would hire lawyers if needed to secure the release of 81 fishing boats which were confiscated by the Sri Lankan Navy, in a letter urging the Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka to ensure the boats are returned.

Sri Lanka completed payments of $750,000 to former IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn this week, for his role as advisor in setting up the country's International Finance Centre.

Cabinet spokesperson Rajitha Senarathne confirmed that the payments had been made but stated the hiring of Mr Strauss-Kahn “has taken place without a cabinet approval.”

Mr Senarathne told reporters, "Our government does not feel it necessary to get his services. We can manage on our own."

The best way to guarantee an independent investigation in to war crimes and human rights abuses in Sri Lanka whilst protecting witnesses is to keep the United Nations involved, said the New York Times Editorial Board on Tuesday.

Noting the new Sirisena government’s obligation to deal with the ‘legacy of the past’ and commenting on Sri Lankan government attempts to delay the release of the UN report into Sri Lankan atrocities,  the editorial stressed, “Any delay in the release of the United Nations report must be brief. And the United Nations must remain involved.”