Thousands of Tamils from across the North-East participated in the Ezhuka Tamil rally (Rise Up Tamil) in Jaffna today. 

The rally, which was organised by the Tamil People's Council, raised awareness about key issues of concern for the Tamil people, including ongoing militarisation and state sponsored Sinhala colonisation of the Tamil homeland, the need for an international investigation into mass atrocities committed against the Tamil people, the continued detention of Tamils under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and the need for a political solution based on a federal model which recognises the Tamil nation and its right to self-determination. 

See full declaration here. 

Organisers estimate that approximately 10,000 people attended the rally, making it the largest Tamil rights protest since the end of the armed conflict more than 7 years ago.

A procession from Nallur was joined by another from Jaffna University and gathered at Muttaveli for the main rally, which saw speeches from politicians and activists. As crowds gathered outside the famous Nallur temple, the arrival of Northern Province Chief Minister C V Wigneswaran signalled the start of the rally. After Justice Wigneswaran cermeoniously broke coconuts, crowds marched thorugh the streets of Jaffna, holding placards and chanting slogans.

The UK’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office met with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera in New York today, to discuss implementation of a UN resolution calling for an internationalised accountability mechanism.

The US Tamil Political Action Council (USTPAC) said it was “deeply disturbed” by Sri Lanka’s justice minister’s rejection of war crimes and threat of legal action against those who attempt to pursue accountability for human rights violations committed by Sri Lankan soldiers.

"USTPAC is deeply troubled by Justice Minister Rajapakshe's comments,” said USTPAC president Dr Karunyan Arulanantham, adding that it should “raise alarm bells among the international community”.

The 21^st anniversary of the Nagarkovil massacre was marked in Jaffna on Thursday evening.

The parents of schoolchildren killed in the Sri Lankan bombing raid laid flowers on a monument at the site of the attack, as they remembered the lives lost in the massacre.

The chief minister of the Northern Province, C V Wigneswaran, the Tamil People's Council and the Tamil Civil Society Forum urged Tamils to join the "Ezhuha Tamil!" mass rally in Jaffna tomorrow. 

The rally, translating to 'Tamils Rise!', demands the Tamil people's rights as well as protest against militarisation and Sinhala colonisation in the Tamil homeland of the North-East. It begins from the Nalloor temple as well as the University of Jaffna, and will finish in Muttaveli grounds. 

Sri Lanka's president Maithripala Sirisena addressing the UN General Assembly in New York on Thursday said the country was is "no hurry" in its journey towards reconciliation and lasting peace. 

His address, which comes after a number of international calls for increased momentum towards delivering on key concerns of the Tamil people, also stressed that Sri Lanka would formulate its own recipe for reconciliation. 

The European Union may have to remove the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Tamil Eelam, from its list of terrorist organisations according to a top European Court advisor, reports the BBC.

Speaking to the BBC, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) Advocate General Sharpston said she found the Council incorrectly relied on judgements made by government’s without checking that they had the same human rights as the EU.

US Secretary of State John Kerry met with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena in New York on Wednesday and called for “meaningful reconciliation and justice in Sri Lanka”.

State department spokesperson John Kirby said Mr Kerry and Mr Sirisena discussed their “our strong, bilateral partnership and to build upon the first U.S.-Sri Lanka Partnership Dialogue”.

A massive Sri Lankan military exercise which has been underway for several weeks concluded with a multi-pronged assault on a beach in the North-East on Tuesday.

The Sri Lankan military declared open a new exhibition showcasing heavy weaponry deployed by the military in the final phase of the armed conflict in the Tamil North-East, more than 7 years after the massacres of tens of thousands of Tamils.