Fisherman from Tamil Nadu, India were threatened and chased away by Sri Lankan navy patrol boats on Saturday, causing tense conflict in the coastal villages of Tamil Nadu.

^{** CN - Blood/murder/violence **}

The bodies of two Tamil men were found in a house in Vavuniya on Saturday, with another man hospitalised in critical condition.

The men were discovered by the Omanthai Police department, who revealed the bodies were both found with massive cuts to the head.

The Sri Lankan army announced that two of the country’s “internationally-famed professional cricketers” have been commissioned as majors in the military, as accused war criminal Shavendra Silva pinned rank insignia on them last week.

Thisara Perera and Dinesh Chandimal were both commissioned in at a military event at Silva’s office last week, where he “expressed his happiness by congratulating both of them”.

As criticism of Muttiah Muralitharan grows following the announcement that Kollywood actor Vijay Sethupathi would play the controversial Sri Lankan cricketer in a biopic, he hit back with a statement claiming that he has helped Eelam Tamils more than his own Malayaga Tamil community and that Tamils on the island should “throw away your insecurities”.

Director-General of the Department Nalaka Kaluwewa has advised all journalists who attended the press conference, which took place at 9.30 a.m. on 13^th October 2020 to self-isolate until the medical reports of the journalists suspected to have contracted the coronavirus are received. 

In Kaluwewa’s statement published today, he stated that the “Health sector suspects that a journalist who attended a press conference held at the Department of Government Information”. 

Prominent human rights lawyer and outspoken government critic, Hajeez Hizbullah’s continued incarceration has raised concerned amongst rights groups. 

The chief commando of Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa’s security force, has stated that India’s counter-terrorism force, NSG, had trained provided training to members of the Prime Minsiter's personal security team. 

“The NSG close protection force has trained 21 personnel of Sri Lanka’s PM security division in close protection skills. The honourable Prime Minister of Sri Lanka wrote to the honourable Indian PM and praised the training,” said NSG director SS Deswal.

The Pirampadi massacre in Kokkuvil was remembered for the 33^rd year on Monday. Over fifty Tamil civilians were shot dead or crushed with an armoured vehicle by Indian Peacekeeping Forces (IPKF) during the massacre. 

The Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) paid its tribute to the victims of both the Pirampadi massacre and of several other massacres that occurred in the late '80s in a tweet stating,

_{MP Rishad Bathiudeen} 

Sri Lanka’s defence secretary Maj. Gen. Kamal Gunaratne said the state does not want to show any mercy to Bathiudeen or his associates,” as he pledged to arrest the All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) “very soon”.

Former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen filed a writ petition this week seeking an order to prevent his arrest after Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) C.D. Wickramaratne was ordered to obtain a warrant to arrest the parliamentarian.

_{Kopika (left) and Tharunicaa (right)}

A Tamil asylum-seeking family-of-four is fighting another hurdle to stay in Australia, after a new deportation appeal from the government which is being heard before the Full Federal Court.

Nades and Priya Murugappan and their Australian-born daughters Kopika, 5, and Tharunicaa, 3, have been on Christmas island since March 2018, awaiting the final decision on their case.