Sri Lanka’s Ministry Of Defence has teamed up with Sri Lanka’s tourism board to lead a motor expedition tour of Jaffna reports defence.lk.

The expeditions are to be lead by military members of Sri Lanka’s Commando Regiment across the North-East.

India's Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways said Sri Lanka has not yet approved a project to link the island's Tamil North-East with Tamil Nadu in the south of India.

Pon Radhakrishnan said on Monday the Indian government had asked the Asian Development Bank to carry out feasibility studies into the project, but that Sri Lanka is yet "to give the nod", the Economic Times reported.

At the beginning of July Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the project to build a road, leading across a bridge and through a tunnel, was already in its planning stages and the Asian Development Bank had pledged Rs 220bn ($3.5bn) towards it.

Former president and parliamentary candidate Mahinda Rajapaksa vowed to protect Sri Lanka's unity and to not leave any room for separatist notions.

Speaking at an event marking the signing of an agreement with 61 Sinhala civil society organisations, Rajapaksa said the unitary character of the state would be compromised under a UNP government.

The JVP says the TNA is attempting to incite communal hatred in order to win more votes at the forthcoming elections, Colombo Gazette reports.

General secretary of the party, Tilvin Silva, said the TNA had failed to meet the expectations of the Tamil electorate and is now attempting to use communal issues to get votes.

Sri Lanka's government is said to have expressed concern at the report released by the International Truth and Justice Project, which detailed ongoing torture and sexual violence against Tamils, since the new regime took power in January this year.

Former external affairs minister GL Peiris said the proposed domestic mechanism to investigate war crimes will have foreign involvement

The senior UPFA member and Mahinda-loyalist said at a press briefing, the recently leaked UN funding report made it clear that the international community will be involved in any investigations

Mr Peiris said the mechanism will be domestic in name only and also raised concern at the designation of the Northern Provincial Council as an implementing partner.