Non-cabinet Minister of Economic Reforms and Public Distribution Dr. Harsha de Silva says ill-planned official visits are a waste of public funds and taxpayers

Defence Secretary Hemasiri Fernando today said licences of all 9mm firearms had been suspended and new licences would be issued from January 23. Mr. Fernando expressed these views at a ceremony held in Nalanda College, Colombo today. The Secretary was felicitated by the President of the Ranaviru Association of the Nalanda College OBA, Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Kapila Jayampathy and school officials upon his arrival at the school, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

President Maithripala Sirisena today released over 1200 acres of Army occupied land in the North.The Army said that Army-used state and private lands in the North which will not have any impact on national security were released at a ceremony attended by the President. The release of this acreage of land included state land in Kilinochchi and Mullaittivu where the Army has been running farms. The ceremony to release the land was coordinated by the Security Fore Headquarters

The United States (US) yesterday rejected claims it was in the process of establishing an army camp in Sri Lanka. The US Embassy in Colombo said that a base had never been a part of the US relationship with Sri Lanka nor have there ever been discussions aimed at establishing one.

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Saturday asserted that the new Constitution would not change the unitary nature of the country. Wickremesinghe emphasized that the United National Party continues to be of the stance that power should be devolved within a unitary state and he is prepared to support any program that would protect country's unitary state.

Former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that he knows who killed former The Sunday Leader Editor Lasantha Wickrematunga. However, he has no evidence to prove it.In an interview with The Sunday Morning

Budgetary allocation for the Defence sector will be close to Rs 400 billion for this year, according to Appropriation Bill 2019, to be presented to Parliament on February 5. With the Police Department being brought under the Defence Ministry, the Rs 307 billion allocated in the previous Appropriation Bill presented in October 2018, has shot up to Rs 393 billion.

Six people were killed and three others were injured when a car they were travelling in collided with a lorry near the Nainamadama Bridge in Wennappuwa on the Colombo- Chilaw Main Road early this morning, police said. They said the car which was travelling towards Chilaw, had collided with the lorry transporting fish from behind at around 3.00 a.m today.

President Maithripala Sirisena arrived in the country last night after concluding his visit to the Philippines. He left for the Philippines on a five-day state visit on January 15 and during his stay, the President held bilateral discussions with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte.

The Foreign Ministry is yet to brief the Colombo based diplomatic community on the status of the Mannar mass graves though German and British representatives as well as some international media organizations visited the site late last year. German Ambassador in Colombo Joern Rohde and British representatives visited the site in November and December, 2018, respectively.

Mahanayake Thera of the Malwatta Chapter Most Ven. Tibbatuwawe Sri Sumangala Thera told a group of UNP MPs including ministers, yesterday, that it was far better to hold elections than trying to introduce a new Constitution. The Mahanayaka Thera stressed the need for holding elections and allowing people to exercise their franchise. However, the Mahanayaka Thera said that those behind the constitution making process had no intention of dividing the country.

Northern Province Governor Suren Raghavan has undertaken an observation visit to the Iranamadu Tank today (18). The purpose of this observation visit was to look into the current condition of Iranamadu Tank and implementation of the decisions taken during a previous observation visit at the tank on January 10. The chief irrigation engineer and other officials who had joined the visit informed the governor that the repairs to the tank can be completed by the 31st of January.

Sri Lanka wants to take back all Sri Lankan Tamil refugees who are now in India, country's High Commissioner to India Austin Fernando said on Friday. "With around 5,000 of these refugees having already returned, we now want to take the rest of them back to their original places," Fernando said while delivering a speech on "Post 2015: Reconciliation Milestones in Sri Lanka", organised by the Foreign Correspondents' Club here.

UPFA MP Duminda Dissanayake said yesterday he was confident that the President would release Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) general secretary the Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera on February 4.He told this to the media after visiting the monk at the Welikada prison and said he had spoken to President about releasing the monk.

Former defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa was responsible for the killing of journalist Lasantha Wickrematunga, the then senior DIG Prasanna Nanayakkara has told an investigator. Identified as Sugathapala, the member of the Mt. Lavinia police crime investigation division, has revealed this to the CID which submitted it the Colombo magistrate

German authorities say they have arrested a suspected member of the Tamil Tigers alleged to have been involved in the 2005 assassination of Sri Lanka

Acceding to a prosecution request in the case filed against former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the Special High Court today directed the Court Registrar to notify the 18 prosecution witnesses attached to the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation (LRDC) not to leave the country without prior permission from the Court. Deputy Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris conducted the prosecution. Mr. Rajapaksa and six others were indicted on the charge of misappropriating Rs.49 million belonging to the LRDC in constructing the D.A. Rajapaksa Museum and Memorial at Medamulana.

Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed duties at the Opposition Leader

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe acceded to a request made by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to change the name of the Northern Province Development Ministry (NPDM) to reflect the Eastern Province as well, Jaffna District TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran said yesterday.

A biography of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremsinghe which has been translated into Chinese was presented to the premiere at Temple Trees today (Jan 18). The biography by Sampath Bandara was translated into Chinese by Professor Wang Yu and Prof. Yin Zhijun.

Former defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said the matter of dual-citizenship was something personal to him and he did not think the US could block individual rights. He said this in response to journalists at the Special High Court premises when they asked him about renouncing his dual citizenship and reports that he may not be allowed to do so. Mr. Rajapaksa said he could either cancel or keep the dual-citizenship as it was something personal.

Sri Lanka

The Special High Court today decided to hear the case against former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa over the alleged misappropriation of public funds for the construction of the D. A. Rajapaksa memorial museum at Weeraketiya continuously from January 22.

Akkaraipattu Deputy Mayor Abdul Gafoor Azmi was today arrested by the Terrorist Investigation Division (TID). Police said he was arrested after he failed to appear in Court in connection with an ongoing case. He is to be produced in the Colombo Magistrate

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe agreed to introduce a mechanism to ensure a

Two LTTE members (Black Tigers) who pleaded guilty to carrying out an attack targeting the Anuradhapura Air Force Base in 2007 were yesterday sentenced to 10 years Rigorous Imprisonment by Anuradhapura High Court Judge Mahesh Weeraman. A group of 24 LTTE men had carried out this attack using light aircraft killing 14 security personnel and incurring a loss of Rs.4000 million to the State.

The United Kingdom (UK) wants Sri Lanka to deliver on the commitments it made to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. UK Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific at the UK Foreign Office, Mark Field, said he had raised this issue with Speaker Karu Jayasuriya at a meeting in London.

Three police officers including a Sub Inspector (SI) were injured when a group of sand miners assaulted them and tried to run them over with a tractor at Keppely in Jaffna. Police said the SI and three police constables of the Kodikamam Police station had left for Keppely on Monday on a tip off, to arrest a group of individuals who were engaged in illegal sand mining at the Keppely lagoon.