May 9 (Island) All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) President As-Sheikh Rizwe Mufthi has written to the Defence Secretary that they handed over a CD containing Zahran�s hate speech and activities detrimental to the interests of the country. The CD was handed over to former Defense Secretary Hemasiri Fernando. When contacted, an ACJU official said that they had had a number of meetings with state intelligence officials. However, he said State Minister Ruwan Wijewardene more..

May 9 (PMD) Pointing out that terrorism has not won anywhere in the world, President Maithripala Sirisena emphasized that the brutality of the extremist terrorism should not be allowed to divide the nation of Sri Lanka. President Sirisena made this observation when he met with the Eastern Province State Officials and the Muslim youths of the province in a tour of the Sindamardu area in Kalmunai today (8) morning. more..

May 9 (FT) Govt has witnessed an increase of foreign immigrants to SL in the last 3 years, with foreign tourists violating visa conditions, but action has been taken to deport them, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said. According to PM, there could be many reasons for this increase of foreign immigrants. However, using an int'l database updated regularly by the State intelligence services and the UN, Dept of Immigration and Emigration has prevented blacklisted people from entering more..

May 9 (FT) The wedding of President Maithripala Sirisena�s only son, Daham, will take place at the Hilton Colombo at 9.30 a.m. today. Daham Sirisena, who is the President�s youngest child, will wed Nipuni Athulaweeraratne. The wedding was originally supposed to be at Shangri-La, but after the Easter Sunday bombings targeted the Chinese-owned five star hotel, the venue was shifted to the unaffected State-owned Hilton Colombo. The poruwa ceremony will be held at 9.53 a.m. more..

May 9 (AN) Eleven Muslim teachers hounded from a Christian school in SL for wearing hijabs have been redeployed. The country�s Western Province Gov. Azath Salley was forced to intervene in the row after the women were barred on Tuesday from entering the Puwakpitiya Tamil Maha Vidyalaya, located about 30 km from Colombo. Parent members of the school�s development society along with former students blocked more..

May 9 (DM) Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of Police launched a probe to determine whether that the nine individuals who were workers of the copper factory at Wellampitiya were released on bail due to an error of Wellampitiya Police officers, Police Spokesman said. Nine employees attached to the copper factory in Wellampitiya, which was owned by Mohamed Inshaq Ahamed, the suicide bomber at Cinnamon Grand Hotel, were arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday attacks on Apr 21. more..

May 9 (Island) Minister Gayantha Karunathilake, presented to Parliament a supplementary estimate to the tune of Rs. 7.12 billion. Among the key allocations are Rs. 190 million for the purchase of two vehicles for Prez Sirisena who holds the defence portfolio and Defence Secretary; and additional Rs. 101 million for the purchase of several vehicles for the Defence Ministry; Rs. 2.8 billion for the purchase of paddy during the coming Maha season and Rs. 500 million for compensation more..

May 9 (Island) UNP MP Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, told Parliament that he had opposed fielding Maithripala Sirisena as the common candidate against Mahinda Rajapaksa at the 2015 prez election as he had realised Sirisena�s inability to handle national security. "I was dead against him. It was Chandrika Bandaranaike who brought this Kodivina (voodoo). I also correctly predicted that he would assume SLFP leadership after his winning. more..

May 9 (DM) In as much as we expressed our gratitude and appreciation to the members of our Intelligence Services, Armed Forces, Police and the STF for the effective and efficient manner in which they carried out search operations, arrested the suspects and seized their weapons caches, we also take some space today to express our gratitude and appreciation to the residents, who also risking their lives, informed the law enforcement agencies of any suspicious activities in their neighbourhood. more..

May 9 (DM) Terrorist has no religion. That�s a poster-line. Appropriate, given the context of the Easter Sunday attack. It is moreover a statement that clearly disassociates the religious from the terrorists, especially those of the Muslim community in SL. Simultaneously a Facebook group calling itself Sri Lanka Unites, a young movement, they say, for hope and reconciliation, has announced that it is looking for 1,000 volunteers to counter hate speech on Facebook and WhatsApp. more..

May 9 (DM) The share of Sri Lanka�s total exports to the South Asia Sub regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) countries increased from 6% to 8% within a period of 13 years (2002�2015), which is remarkably lower than its exports to the rest of the world. Of all SASEC countries, India is the most important export market for SL. India�s average exports to SL during this period were five times higher than SL�s average exports to India. more..

May 9 (ST) Every year, thousands from the provinces board buses provided by political parties and leave for Colombo for May Day rallies. But there were no labour chants this year in the capital and elsewhere, except for symbolic gatherings. There is no normalcy yet following the bloodbath in churches, for which the political leadership is being called to account. The Catholic church hierarchy & Buddhist religious leaders more..

May 9 (EN) Combined losses at six key state utilities rose 144% from a year earlier to 165.3 billion rupees in 2018 mainly due to the collapse of Sri Lanka's soft peg; these losses amounted to about 1.1% of the island's gross domestic product that year. These agencies, which provide energy, transportation, aviation, ports and water related services were also constrained by controlled pricing, weak infrastructure and poor management, more..

May 9 (Island) Oncologists who suggested that the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) reconsider its decision to register Herticad, supplementary medicine that was used with chemotherapy for breast cancer patients, faced continuous harassment by health ministry officials, Dr Damayanthi Peiris, former President of SL College of Oncologists (SLCO), told PCoI on the irregularities of the present administration. more..

May 9 (DM) There was a collective anguish over helplessness and isolation inside the garage of a police station in Negombo, Sri Lanka where dozens of asylum seekers and refugees, having fled Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Yemen, were staying for 17 days fearing retaliation for the Easter Sunday terror attacks. Refugees and asylum seekers are ordinary people facing extraordinary hardships. more..

May 9 (AD) The SLFP and SLPP discussion held on a possible alliance between the two parties concluded a short while ago. Agreements have been made to meet up for the fourth round of talks on the 9th of May, stated SLFP General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara. Representatives of the SLFP and the SLPP are currently holding the discussions at the office of the Leader of the Opposition. more..

May 9 (Island) Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, MP, has recommended that the police be placed under a separate ministry directly responsible for the law and order portfolio. Jayasuriya has said the police will be able to carry out their duties in a much more responsible way under a separate ministry. According to the Speaker, in terms of the accepted international practices the police should be placed under a separate ministry. more..

May 9 (AD) The Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy states that the continuous supply of electricity has once again become a challenge. This is owing to the drop in the hydro-electricity generation and the increased daily electricity demand. The water level of the main reservoirs � Castlereigh, Maussakelle, Victoria, Kotmale and Randenigala �which are utilized to generate hydro-electricity, had been at 29.9% before rainfall, more..

May 9 (DM) Experts at the Attorney General�s Department, relevant ministry secretaries and those at the Legal Draftsman�s Department were all of the view that the Counter Terrorism Act (CTA) should not be rushed, MP Mayantha Dissanayake told Parliament yesterday. Mr. Dissanayake, the Chairman of the Oversight Committee on International Relations, said several experts including the AG�s Department, more..

May 9 (AD) Actor Ryan Van Rooyen has been acquitted from a case filed against him for possession of Cannabis. He was produced before the Matara Magistrate�s Court this morning. The magistrate ordered the release of Ryan Van Rooyen after imposing a fine of Rs 4,000. Ryan Van Rooyen (41) and four other suspects, who were arrested with Makandure Madush at a party in Dubai, were deported to Sri Lanka on April 3rd. more..

May 9 (CT) Yesterday this newspaper quoting a Swedish investment fund Tundra, said that the fallout that the country�s external sector would face due to the Easter Sunday terror attacks should be manageable within the framework of customary borrowing, extra support packages and the like. Tundra which has invested in the local stock market made these comments on Monday. It further said that the extent of the drop in tourism and from where it can once again grow depends on more..

May 9 (FT) When a small but determined group of extremists weaponised airplanes, automobiles and other everyday objects in recent years, modern societies didn�t stop or restrict using these inventions. Instead, they stepped up vigilance and safety precautions. A similar response is needed to deal with some users weaponising social media like Facebook, trying to turn these conversational platforms into toxic spaces filled with hate and deception. Knee-jerk regulatory reactions like more..

May 9 (DM) The police are hoping to obtain detention orders from the courts on Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Pelwatte Sugar factory Asminath Surakman Deen and two other employees who were arrested with VIP security uniforms and several other equipment on Tuesday, a senior police officer told Daily Mirror. The Pelwatte Sugar factory COO and the two employees were nabbed by security personnel at a sugarcane cultivation last Tuesday, following a tip-off given by more..

May 9 (Xinhua) China has donated 10 police vehicles to SL govt as part of the security cooperation between the two countries. The 10 police vehicles were handed over to President Maithripala Sirisena by Chinese Ambassador to SL Cheng Xueyuan at the Presidential Secretariat. Sirisena expressed his thanks to China for offering the timely help. He said the police vehicles will help the local law enforcement better conduct anti-terror missions and maintain public order/security. more..

May 9 (EN) SL's fiscal deficit is expected to worsen in the coming months as the govt gives tax breaks to businesses like tourism to recover after Easter Sunday�s suicide bombings which killed over 250 people, economists and analysts said. "We anticipate that the fiscal impact would come from the revenue side as the govt may not actively push on increasing revenues this year, given the dampened consumer and more..

May 9 (GDI) China has made a cash donation for the treatment of the injured in the Easter Sunday bomb Attacks in Sri Lanka, the Chinese Embassy in Colombo said. On 4th May, Cheng Xueyuan, the Ambassador of China to Sri Lanka presented a cheque for Rs. 17.84 million to Nimal Kumar, National Secretary of the SL Red Cross Society on behalf of the Red Cross Society of China. The donation will be specially used in the treatment of the injured in the Easter Sunday attacks. more..

May 9 (AD) Investigations have revealed that the suicide bomber who set himself off at the St. Anthony�s Church in Kochchikade had arrived at the church on a vehicle that belongs to the suicide bomber who attacked the Kingsbury Hotel. The CID, producing a report to the Colombo Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne, informed the court of these findings today. Police have informed the court that the CCTV footage obtained from the area provides evidence that the suicide bomber had arrived more..

May 9 (AFP) Catholic Church on Thursday (9) announced that it will reopen its schools next week for the first time since Easter Sunday bombings killed 258 people. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith said the schools would open on Tuesday after remaining shut following fears of a repeat of the April 21 attacks on three churches and three luxury hotels. "We have decided to open all Catholic schools on May 14," Cardinal Ranjith said more..

May 9 (AN) After the last Easter terrorist attacks "the time has come for Sri Lankan political leaders to put aside any divergence and work together to rebuild the confidence of the population and restore the country to normality" stated the Methodist bishop of Colombo, Rev. Asisi Perera, during a press conference held two days ago. According to the bishop, "politicians, at every level, must forget the ethnic and religious differences that have poisoned the climate in recent years. more..

May 9 (Isthmus) Cavinda Caldera and Sumudu Atapattu watched their home country get torn apart by years of violent civil war. When the Sri Lankan conflict ended 10 years ago, they thought the worst was over. But both flashed back to the war on April 21 when nine suicide bombers struck in Sri Lanka, killing more than 250 people at three Catholic churches, three hotels and a home in three different cities. An extremist group, National Thowheed Jamaath with ties to ISIS, claimed credit. more..

May 9 (CGTN) The worst attack since the end of the country's 27-year civil war shocked Sri Lanka � known as the pearl of the Indian Ocean � on Easter Sunday. The series of coordinated bomb blasts in churches and hotels left over 300 people dead and hundreds more injured. However tragic the incident, Sri Lankans have demonstrated the fortitude to weather such grief and anger, given their turbulent history, more..

May 9 (AD) The case filed against the Secretary of Ceylon Thowheed Jamaath (CTJ) Abdul Razik who was arrested on charges of inciting religious disharmony and making derogatory remarks towards Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero is set to be taken up again on 25th of July. The case was heard before Colombo Additional Magistrate Kanchana Silva today. CCD informed the court that all of the reports on the investigations into the incident have been submitted to the Attorney General, more..

May 9 (DM) The Opposition today raised concerns over the government's decision to instruct media institutions not to show video footage of weapons found during search operations. UPFA MP Wimal Weerawansa said such a ban on the media was not imposed even during the 30-year long war. He said the people would be compelled to believe what was being circulated on social media after the ban on media. UPFA MP Mahinda Amaraweera said people had a right to know true information of more..

May 9 (DM) According to the CID, seven out of 20 intelligence officers have been remanded but not thousands as rumoured, Minister Sagala Ratnayake said. �A majority of the imprisoned intelligence officers have been released. They were taken into custody under the criminal law and not under any influence. We have at least 10,000 officers attached to intelligence services in the country. We have intelligence services more..

May 9 (CT) Maldivian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid called on PM Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Temple Trees yesterday. The Premier pointed out that there are many Maldivians in the Dehiwala, Panadura and Mount Lavinia areas conducting businesses in Sri Lanka. He says that some extremists are continuing their terror activities while consolidating their security among the residents in these areas. The revolutionary upsurge of the Muslim youth who appear to be academics more..

May 9 (AD) Cabinet Decisions outlined that the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by Minister Arjuna Ranathunga to purchase 272 busses consist of 50 high back seats from Ashok Leyland Public Company for Rs. 3.2 Billion under 5 year leasing basis. Meanwhile latest cabinet decisions highlighted that the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by Minister Arjuna Ranathunga, to purchase 53 luxury busses consist of 33 seats from more..

May 9 (AD) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe says that not only Buddhism, but all other religions in the country, be it Hinduism, Islam and Christianity; have special Sri Lankan characteristics to them which need to be protected. �It is because of these SL characteristics that we have a common Sri Lankan identity. We cannot allow extremism to suppress them. If extremism is attempting to suppress these characteristics, we have to more..

May 9 (DN) A car travelling on the Mahiyangana road veered off and fell into the Vienna Canal near the 52nd milepost at Welampele around 4.00 pm on May 7, Police said. The driver who was the sole occupant, was rescued. Police said as the car was swept downstream for about 500 metres, three youths bathing in the river who noticed the accident had swum downstream and held on to the car with great difficulty and rescued the driver with the help of neighbours who rushed to the scene. more..

May 9 (AD) State Minister Niroshan Perera stated that he is requesting the President to further strengthen the security measures considering the prevailing situation in the country. He stated this at a press conference held in Colombo on the current security situation of the country. The state minister stated that he requests the president to utilize the assistance of the retired Army personnel considering that the country is facing a threat of terrorism. He points out that the service of army personnel more..