As Britain’s fourth Chancellor in as many months takes up office this week, there will be plenty on his plate. A falling sterling, rising interest rates and a spiralling cost of living crisis will leave Jeremy Hunt facing a difficult task. On his first day on the job, he told reporters of how wide spending cuts will be vital in reeling back government spending and repairing Britain’s economy. One area that will need urgent review is the UK multimillion-pound funding of Sri Lanka.

The former Norwegian peace envoy to Sri Lanka Erik Solheim met Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians M A Sumanthiran and R Shanakiyan in Colombo yesterday.

A 24-year-old Eelam Tamil man who was shot at by the Sri Lankan navy, swam across the Palk Strait and arrived in India last week, as he becomes the latest Tamil to flee the island.

The youth, named as Hassan Khan alias Ajay alias Khan of Mannar, was reportedly part of another Eelam Tamil family of five, including three children, who described the encounter with the Sri Lankan navy last week.

As the navy fired at the boat, Khan however dived into the water. He then swam seven nautical miles across the Palk Strait to India.

A remembrance ceremony was held at the home of 2nd Lt. Maalathy, the first female fighter of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to lose her life in the Tamil armed struggle, marking 35 years since her death.

The ceremony, held at her home in Mannar, took place with members of the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF).

Over 2,500 families have requested a meeting with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe before January 2023, regarding the release of military occupied land in Jaffna.

According to a report in The Morning, land in Myliddy and Palaly, in Valikamam-North, Jaffna, continues to be occupied by the Sri Lankan army, more than 30 years after it was first seized.

Sri Lanka’s justice minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe reiterated his government’s rejection of any international accountability mechanisms for mass atrocities, and instead claimed that he will hold discussions with Tamil diaspora leaders over a “domestic mechanism”.

Sri Lanka’s Fisheries Minister and accused war criminal Douglas Devananda was accompanied by dozens of police officers as security was ramped up for his visit to Mullaitivu this week.

Road blocks were put in place and ongoing protests by Tamil fishermen in the district were called off, as the minister vowed to address their concerns regarding illegal fishing in the region.

Australian Federal Police have arrested and charged two men with attempting to bribe Sri Lankan government officials with hundreds of thousands of dollars, in order to win multi-million construction project contracts.

The AFP alleges that between 2009 and 2016 the men conspired to arrange the payment of more than AU$304,000 to bribe foreign government officials.

More than half of Sri Lanka’s crude oil imports have come from Russia, reports the Financial Times, as cash-strapped Colombo looks for cheaper sources of fuel globally.

As over 140 countries condemned Russia’s illegal annexation of regions of Ukraine, Sri Lanka abstained on the UN General Assembly resolution.

UN General Assembly Resolution ES-11/L.5 condemned Russia’s "attempted illegal annexation" and called on member states to not recognise the move, furthering Russia’s international isolation. The resolution was passed with 143 votes in favour and reaffirmed support for the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.