A court in Germany has given four Tamils suspended sentences after they confessed to fundraising for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) this week.

The Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court imposed sentences of between one year and one year and nine months on the four Tamil men.

According to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the court took “into account that they had to flee their homeland due to violence and oppression by the Sinhalese majority of the population and that they lost relatives and friends to anti-Tamil pogroms”.

The president of Open Society Foundations warned that Sri Lanka “has a history of diverting aid” and called on the International Monetary Fund to ensure the issue of corruption is “on the agenda” during negotiations.

“Sri Lanka has a history of diverting aid,” tweeted Mark Malloch-Brown, in response to a tweet about systemic corruption in Sri lanka.

As fuel queues continued to grow across the island, tensions flared in Mannar this week amidst reports of gas cylinders being hoarded and unequal distribution of fuel with many suffering across the North-East.

Earlier today, Sri Lankan police officers as well as the Mannar District Government Agent and Divisional Secretary had to intervene as locals accused a business of hoarding a stock of gas cylinders.

Newspapers in Jaffna are facing the prospect of having to halt their presses, as the ongoing fuel shortage on the island has impacted on their distribution networks.

At least three newspapers are regularly printed in Jaffna and facing major issues, as the lack of fuel has meant distributing the news is grinding to a halt.

Tamil families of the disappeared marked their 1,950^th day of continuous protest with another demonstration in Vavuniya on Thursday.

A former cadre who participated in a protest against an illegal attempt to install a Buddha statue on a native Tamil temple site, was visited by unknown gunmen who threated to shoot him dead if he continued to take part in such demonstrations.

Velupillai Madhavameyar, a social activist and former cadre, said the incident had taken place on June 15, just days after dozens of Tamils demonstrated against the Sri Lankan military-aided attempt in the Kurunthurmalai area of Mullaitivu.

Hamilton Reserve Bank has sued Sri Lanka for defaulting on its debt as the cash-strapped island faces it's worst economic crises in decades. 

The bondholder, filed a lawsuit earlier this week in a US federal court, seeking the full payment of the $250 million 

Last month, Sri Lanka officially defaulted on its international debt obligations after failing to make a payment of approximately US$78m during its 30-day grace period. 

Responding to reports of the Sri Lankan army opening fire on those queuing for petrol, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee has condemned the military’s violence and demanded that those responsible be held accountable.

On Twitter the Committee tweeted:

Opening fire on unarmed civilians is entirely unacceptable. Proud to join those worldwide calling on Sri Lanka's government to make clear that the military's violent & provocative abuses cannot continue. Those guilty must be held to account. https://t.co/3hXPyQOQ4M

Follow proceedings from Brampton Ontario, where the design of a monument to commemorate the Tamil genocide is being released.

Sri Lanka’s prime minister told parliament that the country’s economy has “completely collapsed” and admitted that “no country or organisation in the world is willing to provide fuel to us,” as the financial crisis on the island worsens.