Interfering in the religious freedom of Hindus and Muslims in Ampaarai, the occupying Sinhala military has appropriated an Islamic burial ground at Koddukkal in Poththuvil division of the district while instructing the administration of an ancient Murukan temple, worshipped by the Saivites for centuries, to stop the renovation of the temple.

The head of the Murukan temple administration at Changkaman-kandi in Thirukkoayil, Mr. Nakalingam, on Wednesday said that the SL military personnel who had come from Kaagnchirang-kudaa military base instructed the temple administration to immediately stop the renovation work being undertaken at the temple. The SL Army had told the temple administration that they were acting on behalf of the SL Archeology Department in Colombo.

The head of the elected civic body in Poththuvil, Mr M Subair, blamed that the Sinhala military from Oo'ra'ni camp has appropriated the Islamic burial ground at Koddukkal without approaching the divisional secretary or any of the civil officials in the division. The SL military has already surveyed the lands and appropriated it, he said.

Mr Nakalingam of the Hindu temple administration at Changkaman-ka'ndi accused the SL military for interfering in the religious affairs, questioning how the SL military could act on behalf of the Archeology Department.

Hindu Makaa Chapai in Ampaarai was engaged in the renovation of the temple with the support of the devotees, he said adding that the Murukan temple, situated at the top of a hill, is one of the ancient places of worships of the Saivites in the region.

The temple has also remained a key place of solace for the pilgrims towards the historic Kathirkaamam temple, Mr Nakalingam said, adding that he had complained to relevant authorities of Hindu affairs, divisional secretary and the SL Government Agent of Ampaa'rai district.

The Sinhala soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army and the 'counter-insurgency' trained commandos of the Special Task Force (STF) which comes under the SL Police Department, have been deployed in chasing Tamils away from the ancient Tamil settlements in Ampaarai for years. The only protecting mechanism of the Tamils in the past had been the heavy presence of a guerilla fighting formation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the jungles of Ampaarai.

The Barathiya Janatha Party (BJP) that is proposing to build a Sita temple near Colombo, based on constructed myths, could very well work for protecting the existing temples of real heritage. Do they have guts to build the ancient Siva temple found in ruins at Dondra Head, the southernmost tip of the island, the Saiva activists in the East ask.

Meanwhile, the Rajapaksa-SLMC collaborated administration was secretly blessed by India to carry out the New Delhi - Colombo agenda of demographic changes against Tamils and Tamil-speaking Muslims in an accelerated way in the East. They did it earlier by using Karuna and Pillaiyan and now they use the SLMC, informed circles said.

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Sri Lanka Army Commander Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya has said that the plans are afoot to set up a new Army colony in Jaffna peninsula. The official told the Sunday Sinhala newspaper, The Divaina that only three camps would be kept in the peninsula and the rest of the camps would be withdrawn. The withdrawn camps are to be relocated in the Army colony. The lands where the camps are presently established would be returned to the legal owners, the Army Commander said. The new Army colony will be established in the Palaly area where the defense forces headquarters and the airport is situated. The Kankasanthurai naval harbor will also be established in the colony.

The court order to the remove Ensal (cardamom) plantation from the Knuckles Range has been suspended under the influence of the President Mahinda Rajapaksa, reports 'Lanka' newspaper. The removal has been suspended on July 02, 2012 following a request made by the large scale Ensal smugglers from the President at Matale District Coordination Committee Meeting. The President has advised them to take required measures after discussing the matter with the Defence Secretary. Ten months has passed since the discussion and no decision has been made regarding the situation. The former Director General of Wild Life Conservation Department has inform the District officers of the department on July 30,2012 in the letter ED/LD/14/Gen not to execute the removal order until they receive instructions from the Defence Secretary.

Leader of the National Freedom Front (NFF) Wimal Weerawansa today requested the President to immediately ban the slaughtering of cattle within the country. In the wake of a Buddhist monk setting himself on fire yesterday to protest against the slaughter of cattle for meet, the Minister has written to President Mahinda Rajapaksa saying measures should be taken based on that incident. The Minister of Construction, Engineering Services, Housing and Common Amenities further points out that the majority of the country's Buddhist and Hindu people reject cattle slaughtering with disgust and that only a small group in Sri Lankan society approves of it. He stated that in India, which has a majority of Hindu devotee, cattle slaughtering has been banned and that during festivals such as Thai Pongal they are kind enough to express gratitude to Cattle, who play an important role in the traditional Indian farmstead.

The Military said that in less than four years since the war ended nearly all areas in the conflict zone excepting for 96 square kilometres had been cleared of landmines and could be now used for resettlement purposes. Military spokesman Ruwan Wanigasuriya said out of an area of 2,064 square kilometres identified as hazardous we have cleard 1,968 Sq. Km thus leaving only 96 Sq. Km to be cleared. The Army and de mining groups have removed some 500,000 anti-personnel mines, anti-tank mines, and numerous other forms of improvised explosive devices during this process. The total thus recovered is said to be about one million. "We have also cleared areas that are essential for development to take place. If not for our success in the demining front, the activities now being carried out in the North and East would not have been possible," Brigadier Wanigasuriya said.

Minister of Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development, Douglas Devananda, while thanking Norway for its role in facilitating peace in Sri Lanka, requested the country to assist generously in the post-war development activities in the war-torn areas in the country. Minister Devananda was the Chief Guest at the National Day of Norway, celebrated on Wednesday (22) in Colombo. Extending Sri Lanka's greetings to the King of Norway and to the Norwegian people, Minister Devananda said: "Norway's facilitation of Sri Lanka's peace process, while giving rise to a wide spectrum of views in the country, also demonstrated the close ties between the two countries. Following renewed economic partnership, it is an opportune time to redefine our relations in the political sphere. It is noteworthy that these political ties have received a valuable impetus in recent years with interactions at high political level.

The Buddhist clergyman, named Indrarathana thero, who set fire to himself yesterday (24) in Front of the Kandy temple of the tooth, has held a pradheshiya sabha membership in Jathika Hela Urumaya until recently. However, the JHU says that committing suicide in protest on a Vesak poya day is not at all appropriate for a Buddhist clergyman and that it does not give a good example to the citizens. JHU leader Ven.Omalpe Sobhitha thero made this comment while taking part in an interview with BBC Sandeshaya from Singapore. Ven Sobhitha said that although there are instances that people should commit their lives to achieve noble goals but committing suicide can never be approved.

Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) Parliamentarian, Athuraliye Rathana Thera said, yesterday the government must be compelled to change its stand on the 13th Amendment to the Constitution through public mobilization. Referring to the announcement made by Cabinet Spokesperson, Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, who confirmed on Wednesday (22) that the government would not be abolishing the 13th Amendment, and the strongly expressed views of the JHU calling for the abolishment of the same, Rathana Thera said, "We must mobilize the public to push the government toward changing their stand on the matter." JHU National Organizer, Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe, responding to the inquiries pertaining to his party's alliance with the government, considering the current differences of opinion regarding the 13th Amendment, said, "What Minister Yapa expressed was the stand of the government. It is our view the amendment should be abolished. This isn't a government-JHU problem."

A fire has broken down in a tire refilling center near Vidyananda Piriwena in Ampara today (25) morning around 1.30am. The fire has been put out with the help of Walachchena Police and air force Fire brigades. Many equipment used for refilling tires have been completely destroyed and the loss is not yet estimated. Luckily no lives have been hurt from the fire and Police say that an exact reason for the fire has not yet been discovered. Ampara police is holding further investigations.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) yesterday urged the government to resolve the issues pertaining to the Northern Provincial Council elections and power devolution because of the contrasting views expressed by some of the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) allies. TNA parliamentarian Suresh Premachanadran said it was up to the government to resolve the issue among its allies because it was the present regime, which appointed the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) to propose ways of resolving the national question. He said several constituent parties of the ruling UPFA Government were coming out with various views on the provincial councils and the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. Mr. Premachandra said contrasting views were even being expressed by public servants who had no right to do so.

Criminal Investigation Department of Sri Lanka police has begun an investigation into the fire that gutted a cargo warehouse in the main Colombo Port yesterday. The early morning fire broke out Friday in the Container Freight Station (CFS) -1 warehouse at the JCT terminal inside the Port of Colombo completely destroyed the warehouse and its contents. The firefighting units of the Port Authority, the Army assisted the Colombo Fire Brigade to douse the fire which took about four hours to bring under control, according to the Port Authority sources. Project Minister of Ports and Highways Rohitha Abeygunawardena visited the sites and ordered an immediate inquiry to ascertain the cause of the fire.

The Government yesterday stressed that the U.S embassy as any other foreign mission based in Colombo should get prior approval to engage with local government authorities. According to External Affairs Ministry Secretary Dr. Karunathilake Amunugama, foreign missions should either inform or get prior approval to implement any project in agreement with the local government authorities. "This is an international norm," he said. The Secretary's comments came in the wake of the U.S. embassy move to set up a public information and activity centre known as the American Corner in agreement with the Trincomalee Urban Council.

The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), a coalition party of Sri Lanka' ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), said it will take measures to mobilize the public to urge the government to abolish the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. JHU parliamentarian Ven. Athuraliye Ratana Thero said the public must be mobilized to urge the government to change its stance on the 13th Amendment. The Thero's call to abolish the 13th Amendment came in response to the statement by Cabinet Spokesperson Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa that the government would not abolish the 13th Amendment. At the cabinet press briefing Thursday Minister Yapa said the government has no intention whatsoever to postpone the Northern Provincial Cunicl polls, repeal the 13th Amendment or introduce amendments to the Constitution to remove police and land powers to the provinces.

An armed squad that came in a white van on Tuesday abducted a 68-year-old activist, Thangathurai Veluppillai, a supporter of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in Ampaa'rai district. The victim was blindfolded while he was at Kalmunai public market and was taken away by the squad that tortured him to obtain the names of the TNA activists in Ampaa'rai district. The abduction comes a few days after the intelligence of the occupying SL military 'investigated' him following a meeting against the land grab by the SL military in his division. After 3 days of interrogations in Batticaloa, Mr Thangathurai was taken back to Kalmunai and released there, the sources further said. Informed civil sources in Ampaa'rai told TamilNet that the abducted victim, who hails from Malvaththai in Chamman-thu'rai division of Ampaarai district, was taken to Batticaloa for interrogation.

The Q branch of the Tamil Nadu police, with the assistance of the Ernakulam North police, arrested 21 Sri Lankans who were about to sail to Australia in a fishing boat from Kochi. The operation was carried out after information about the same was passed on by the Intelligence Bureau. According to officials, seven men, six women and eight children were nabbed from the New Cochin Residency, a hotel situated near the Ernakulam North Railway station, in the early hours of Thursday. The Sri Lankans came from Chennai by train and according to a statement issued by them, an agent named Subash took '1 lakh from each of them on Tuesday evening. 'These people are from four refugee camps located near Chennai. They were planning to sail to Australia in a fishing vessel. The agent escaped during the raid.

A Buddhist monk set himself on fire this morning outside the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, Kandy in protest over the slaughter of cattle, police said. Sources said the monk poured petrol over his body and then lit himself. He was rushed to the Kandy hospital with severe injuries and later transferred to General Hospital, Colombo, the police added.

Dominican Republic authorities have arrested four men from Sri Lanka accused of smuggling at least 60 migrants from India and the Middle East into the U.S. and Canada using fake passports. Officials with the National Investigations Department say the alleged leader of the group is a Canadian citizen identified as 42-year-old Karunhanithy Nallathamby. Director Fidel Calcagno said late Wednesday that Nallathamby was in charge of obtaining passports in Canada that would later be altered and given to migrants once they reached the Dominican Republic. He said the majority of migrants had criminal backgrounds and would stay in Nallathamby's house for up to two months before traveling to the U.S. or Canada.

Immigration Minister Brendan O'Connor has granted lawyers access to two Tamil asylum seekers who feared they would be removed to Sri Lanka. The asylum seekers - who cannot be named - emailed refugee lawyer David Manne from Christmas Island on Wednesday seeking his help to apply for refugee protection. The email came after 31 Tamil asylum seekers were flown from Christmas Island to Sri Lanka after they were determined to be not genuine refugees. Daniel Webb, from the Human Rights Law Centre, said that such people were typically interviewed without legal advice.

A massive pre-dawn fire has gutted the inbound cargo warehouse in Sri Lanka's Colombo Port, port officials said. The early morning fire had broken out in the CFS-1 warehouse at JCT terminal inside the Port of Colombo, the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Dr. Priyath Bandu Wickrama told the media. The Colombo Fire Brigade with the assistance of Navy and Army has managed to douse the fire. There were no injuries reported due to the fire. The Port Authority Chairman has said that the authority will immediately take necessary measures to evaluate the cargo that was destroyed in the fire. Project Minister of Ports and Highways Rohitha Abeygunawardena said that an immediate inquiry has been launched to ascertain the cause of the fire.

The National Investigations Department (DNI) in the Dominican Republic arrested members of a people trafficking network with possible links to international terrorist cells, who used Dominican Republic as a bridge from Cuba, France, Spain, Sri Lanka and Haiti, Dominican today.com reported. The website said that DNI chief operating officer Fidel Paulino identified the Sri Lankan- Canadian Karunanithy Nallathamby as the group's leader, arrested in Sosua, Puerto Plata, while Kanthaany Siresh or Sriram Kannan, and Ganesh Mahenderan, or David Kristen and Kohulan Selvarasa, were detained in a house where they had hidden during two months. The DNI said Nallathamby had stolen original passports from a passport office in Canada to alter them and sell to Indian nationals who entered Dominican territory along the border with Haiti.

The Sri Lanka government yesterday expressed concern over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the US embassy in Colombo and the Trincomalee Urban Council to jointly establish a public information and activity centre known as the American Corner, without the knowledge or the authorisation of the Sri Lanka External Affairs Ministry. Government sources said that foreign missions based in Colombo should obtain prior approval or inform to the External Affairs Ministry of Sri Lanka whenever they need to engage with local authorities - which is the international norm. Currently there are two American Corners - in Kandy and Jaffna. The signatories to the MoU for establishing and American Corner were Christopher Teal, Director, Press, Cultural and Educational Affairs of the US embassy in Colombo and the chairman of the Trincomalee Urban Council, K. Selvarajah.