The body of a 26-year-old Tamil youth has been found hanging in Navalar Road in Jaffna, reported the Uthayan.

The body has been identified as that of Ganesh Rukhshan, a labourer from Vavuniya.

Sri Lankan police, who are reportedly investigating the murder, have said the death could have been due to an argument that Rukhshan had with his friends, after a night of drinking. The cause of his death is still to be established.

When Rukhshan’s body was discovered, the entire premises had been set on fire.

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The UK has said it will support the calls by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, for an international investigation into war crimes in Sri Lanka, stating "the international community now has a duty to act", in a statement welcoming her report.

Foreign Office Minister Hugo Swire said in a statement the UK agreed with her finding that Sri Lanka has failed to credibly investigate past violations and remained concerns about ongoing issues such as militarisation and continuation of impunity.

The statement went on to say that the UK "strongly support her call for an international investigation".

“No one has been held accountable for these crimes, and even now the government in Colombo remains intent on burying the past. Only an international commission of inquiry stands any chance of rectifying this omission.”

“the government’s post-war policies have entrenched an increasingly authoritarian regime in Colombo, deepened the rift between Tamils and Sinhalese, and drawn dangerous new lines of ethnic and religious conflict.”

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has reportedly lashed out at Sri Lankan Muslim Congress head and Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem, over allegations that he handed over a report to UN High Comissioner Navi Pillay when she visited the island that detailed attacks on Muslims.

In a Cabinet meeting Mahinda Rajapaksa, described as 'irate', accused Hakeem of “betraying the country”.

“If you cannot stay in the Government, you can get out,” the President told the SLMC leader.

Addressing members of the Foreign Correspondents Association of Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, outlined that there was no need for the United Nations to adopt a resolution calling for an international inquiry in Sri Lanka.

Speaking to journalists that report for foreign media outlets, he said,

“We are taking measures locally, there is no need for a resolution. The whole resolution, we are uncomfortable with. There should not be a resolution at all."

"This is like Cassius Clay using a school boy as a punching bag."

Rajapaksa said that he did not understand why the US is pushing for an international investigation, when asked for the reason, saying only “God knows why".

The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has called on the UN Human Rights Council to establish an independent and international inquiry into war crimes and past violations of human rights law in Sri Lanka.

IBAHRI Co-Chair Baroness Helena Kennedy QC said,

“In the absence of an independent judiciary, the IBAHRI has noted on multiple occasions the inability of the Sri Lankan legal system to provide redress for alleged human rights violations and war crimes.

“In light of this, the IBAHRI fully supports the recommendations put forward in the report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and strongly urges the UN Human Rights Council, to adopt these recommendations in the forthcoming resolution on Sri Lanka.”

The Sri Lankan Police has stopped artists from performing a play, saying they were were ‘pro-LTTE’, reported the Uthayan.

The artists were going to perform traditional, cultural plays at the Amman Temple in Oorkaavaththurai, but the police took away the scripts moments before the start of the performances.

Local residents have condemned the police activities, Uthayan further said.

Channel 4 News has issued a report to counter what it has called Sri Lanka’s “propaganda offensive” today, after the Sri Lankan government distributed booklets across the world attempting to slur the channel.

The report, entitled “The Uncorrupted Truth”, was released by the British broadcaster, as Sri Lanka comes under increasing scrutiny over its human rights record, in the run up to the next session of the UN Human Rights Council in March.

A spate of Buddha statues have been planted across the North-East this month, reported the Uthayan and Tamil Mirror, some with direct involvement from the Sri Lankan security forces.

In Mulliyavalai, a Buddha statue was erected with Buddhist monks and police officials at the inaugurating ceremony.