A Mullivaikkal remembrance vehicle procession commenced on Tuesday morning from the Thiyaga Theepam Thileepan memorial site, as commemorative events marking the Tamil genocide remembrance week continued across the North-East.

Former Sri Lankan president and accused war criminal Mahinda Rajapaksa appeared before the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) on Tuesday (May 12) to record a statement in connection with the controversial Airbus aircraft procurement deal involving SriLankan Airlines.

An event marking the beginning of Tamil Genocide Remembrance Week commenced on Monday (May 11) in Valikamam South as the Tamil nation commemorates 17 years since the genocide at Mullivaikkal. 

The Tamil National Council (TNC) has urged Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay to adopt a resolution in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly reaffirming that the mass atrocities committed against Eelam Tamils constituted genocide and calling for an international criminal investigation.

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader, C. Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday during a ceremony held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.

An 88-foot Buddha statue newly constructed at the Nainativu Rajamaha Viharaya in Nainativu, Jaffna, was ceremonially unveiled this week, drawing large numbers of Sinhala Buddhist devotees from southern Sri Lanka.

A.G. Perarivalan, one of the convicts in the assassination case of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, has officially enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Members of the Batticaloa Municipal Council marked Mullivaikkal Remembrance Week during the council’s monthly sitting on 7 May, wearing black ribbons and paying tribute to Tamils who were killed during the final stages of the armed conflict in 2009.

The third phase of excavation activities at the Chemmani mass grave site in Jaffna was temporarily halted on Saturday, May 9, and is scheduled to resume on June 1.

Former parliamentarian and spokesperson for the Democratic Tamil National Alliance, Suresh Premachandran, has called on newly sworn-in Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay to extend his support towards building a “prosperous Eelam” alongside a prosperous Tamil Nadu.

A senior Sri Lankan Buddhist monk and chief prelate of the Anuradhapura Atamasthana, Pallegama Hemarathana Thero, has been remanded until 12 May after being arrested over allegations of abducting and sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl.

A major fire that erupted at the medical storage complex of the Jaffna Teaching Hospital in the early hours of Saturday has destroyed a large quantity of medicines and caused extensive property damage, with authorities estimating losses worth several million rupees.

 

Residents and landowners from Myliddy, Valikamam North staged a protest on Friday (May 8) for the third consecutive week in front of the military Commander's bungalow, demanding the release of their lands which continue to remain under military occupation as part of a High Security Zone (HSZ).

Excavations at the Chemmani mass grave site in Jaffna were disrupted by heavy rainfall on Friday as investigators continued uncovering additional skeletal remains, including infants, bringing the total number of remains identified to 260.