The Sri Lankan military arrested the driver and conductor of a bus travelling from Mannar to Colombo on Saturday evening, after allegedly discovering dynamite sticks on board during a  stop and search operation.

The bus was stopped by the military at a newly opened checkpoint in Neriyakulam around 7pm Saturday, January 18.

Around 500 people in Malaysia – including family members, friends and supporters – congregated to demand the release of the 12 men that were arrested in October for alleged links to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which is still labelled as a ‘terrorist organisation’ in the country.

An unknown group of men in a white van attempted to intimidate relatives of the Mirusuvil massacre victims earlier this month, as a Sri Lankan parliamentarian claimed the soldier who was convicted of the killings was freed by the president.

The four men reportedly visited neighbours of the relatives on January 11, collecting details of who was staying at each of their properties and their connections to those that were massacred almost 20 years ago.

The families filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission in Jaffna on Monday and requested the commission to help ensure their safety and security. 

_{(Video Credit: Yardstick Films)}

'Keenie Meenie: The British Mercenaries Who Got Away with War Crimes', a new book which has just been released, uncovers how a British mercenary company formed by ex-Special Air Service (SAS) veterans carried out highly controversial secret operations across the world, including in Sri Lanka.

Keenie Meenie Services (KMS), a private and one of Britain’s first mercenary companies, was established in the 1970’s and recruited military veterans equipped with combat experience from various conflict situations.

The book – written by reporter for investigative journalism organisation Declassified UK and author Phil Miller - claims its powerful backing meant successive British governments failed to restrain it from operating.

The house of a Tamil local news journalist has been attacked and vandalised by a group of unidentified men in Mannipay, Jaffna.

The Sri Lankan government is planning to pass laws granting immunity to members of its intelligence services who have been accused of grave human rights violations, Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka (JDS) reports.

A court in Germany has convicted a Tamil man of being involved in the 2005 assassination of Sri Lanka's foreign minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, despite claims that his words had been mistranslated during his asylum interview.

The man, identified only as Navanithan G, has been in Germany since 2012 but only arrested over the assassination last year. Authorities claim that during his asylum interview, he admitted to being a member of the LTTE intelligence unit and to providing information on Kadirgamar’s whereabouts to the LTTE. Navanithan, however, told the court that his words were mistranslated. 

Sri Lankan police in Jaffna have been accused of torturing two Tamils in Jaffna this week, leaving them both with broken limbs. 

The two Tamil men were arrested by Kayts police and accused of theft. They allege that once taken to the police station, they both were beaten and tortured by police officers - to the point that they both had broken arms.

The official in charge of the crime division at the station was singled out as being responsible for the torture that they endured. Local Tamil civil society organisations said they have repeatedly complained about the officer in question, who has been allegedly to repeatedly been involved in unlawful activities.

The European Union (EU) tweeted that the renewal of GSP plus trade preferences for Sri Lanka was not “automatic”, warning that it was related to the “effective implementation of 27 international conventions, related to human and labour rights, environment and good governance”.

The Sri Lankan military interrogated a Tamil youth in Jaffna on Saturday, after accusing him of leading a campaign which has seen growing calls for the removal of a military base from the local area.

Soldiers reportedly raided the house of the youth in Chulipuram on Friday evening, and told his family that he was to be summoned for questioning the next day.

Though others tried to accompany him to the army camp on Saturday, soldiers only allowed the youth to enter. During his interrogation, he was reportedly asked to sign a letter stating that he did not want the military to leave the area.