<p>The Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO), a constituent party of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA)&nbsp;said that any form of support given to the United National Party (UNP) should be based on a written agreement to address issues concerning Tamils, reports <a href="https://b.marfeelcache.com/amp/www.dailymirror.lk/article/TNA-support-f…">DailyMirror.lk</a>.</p> <p>Following a meeting on Sunday, TELO, one of the four main constituent parties of the TNA, called for a written agreement based on five central points to be made with the UNP before any further support.</p> <p>A central committee member of the party, MK Shivajalingam, speaking to the Daily Mirror, said,&nbsp;“we know it is difficult for a minority government to find a solution to the Tamil national question. We are looking for an interim solution at least to begin with. If the TNA supports the UNP, it should be conditional and an agreement needs to be signed. Unless the TNA agrees to this demand of ours we will take our own decision on it separately.”</p>

<p>Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena will take “necessary action” in the next 24 hours and will meet with the national security council on the issue of political prisoners, said the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) after a court order this morning barred Mahinda Rajapaksa from acting as prime minister.</p> <p>The TNA said that its “leadership” had met with Sirisena, who said that there was no prime minister or government at present.</p>

Sri Lanka's Court of Appeal has issued an interim order preventing Mahinda Rajapaksa from functioning as prime minister and holding cabinet meetings. The order is a blow to the former president’s attempt to hold the prime minister’s office and forms the latest twist in Colombo’s political turmoil.

Judge Preethipadhman Surasena said the stay was issued as "irreversible damage could be caused" if Rajapaksa continued to function as Sri Lanka’s prime minister.

Tamil Americans in several states commemorated Maaveerar Naal over the past week.

In New York City hundreds of Tamils gathered in Queens. Events were also held in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Ohio, North Carolina, Florida, Massachussets, Washington DC, amongst others. 

<p>The Sri Lankan army holds all information about rehabilitated LTTE cadres, and therefore there was no ‘threat’ to national security, the army’s commander warned.</p> <p>Speaking to Ada Derana about the killing of two Sri Lankan police officers in Batticaloa, the commander Mahesh Senanayake said that although the killing was a lone incident it could not be ignored in the current situation.</p>

Two former LTTE cadres are being held in police custody over the killings of two Sri Lankan police officers in Batticaloa, while around twenty people, including former cadres and local organisers have been questioned and released.

Sri Lankan police media division announced earlier in the week that three former cadres from Batticaloa and one from Kilinochchi had been arrested.

The grave of an LTTE fighter, Lt. Bosan, was discovered in Thanjavur last week.

A local of the area stumbled upon the neglected gravestone during his daily morning walk in the area.

<p>An estimated $1.7 billion loan from Japan to Sri Lanka has been put on hold as political turmoil on the island continues, claimed the leader of the Sinhala extremist Jathika Hela Urumaya party.</p> <p>Champika Ranawaka, who was the Cabinet Minister of Megapolis and Western Development until Sri Lanka was plunged into crisis in October, was quoted by&nbsp;<a href="https://economynext.com/Sri_Lanka_political_crisis_derails_US$1.7bn_LRT…">Economy Next</a>&nbsp;as saying&nbsp;the loan has now been “derailed”. The payment was reported to have funded the construction of a light rail transit system in Colombo.</p> <p>"The loan was to have been signed in November 22," he told parliament, stating that other loans to Colombo &nbsp;have also been put on hold.</p>

The United National Party (UNP) has declared that Ranil Wickremesinghe will continue to be the party’s official candidate for prime minister, in a letter to the Tamil National Alliance on Friday.

In a letter addressed to TNA Leader R Sampanthan , UNP Chairman MP Kabir Hashim stated, "Ranil Wickremesinghe, MP, is the nominee of the United National Party for the position of Prime Minister".

Soldiers stationed in Jaffna received a set of new motorbikes last week, as militarisation of the Tamil homeland continues despite opposition from locals.

The Sri Lankan armed held a military demonstration for the visit of a senior commander to its Mullaitivu base last week, in signs that militarisation of the region looks set to continue.

Supporters of Mahinda Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party held a rally in Jaffna on Friday. 

Asking Tamils to support Rajapaksa, the rally organisers called for a general election to take place.

The massacre of 32 Tamils in Othiyamalai, Mullaitivu by the Sri Lankan army in 1984 was remembered today with a new memorial unveiled at the site. 

On December 2,1984, men in the village were rounded up by the Sri Lankan army, dragged to the village community centre where they were stripped naked and tied up by their clothes. 

Twenty-seven of the men were shot and killed on the spot. A further five were detained and are believed to have been murdered at a later date.

A Tamil detainee was tortured by Koppay police officers for several days after being arrested for failing to attend a court hearing. 

The victim reported being hung upside down and beaten for three days before he was brought to court. 

"The police arrested me last Sunday and severely beat me," the youth, told reporters, speaking anonymously for fear of repurcussions. 

"I was beaten up severely from the day of arrest. I was hung upside down and beaten up. I was burnt by fire on my hand."