Defence officials are dumbfounded as to how a tape recording of missing journalist Prageeth Ekanaligoda, which was only in the hands of the military, has now appeared on some websites. Last year the military had claimed that there was a tape recording of a conversation between Ekanaligoda and the LTTE and later that tape recording was handed over to the Homagama Magistrate. The tape recording of the alleged conversation between Ekanaligoda and the LTTE was handed over to the court during the last hearing on the disappearance of Eknaligoda.

The tape recording was kept with the court but the fact that it was later published on websites raised suspicions whether it was leaked to the websites by the military, senior defence lawyers said. When contacted, military spokesman Brigadier Jayanath Jayaweera said that since the matter is before courts he could not make any comments.

Meanwhile police sources said that they were also astonished over the appearance of posters at several locations of Mrs. Sandya Eknaligoda calling her an LTTE supporter and that she was betraying the army. Police sources said that such incidents would easily have been caught on CCTV cameras and it is shocking that the pasting of these posters were not captured on CCTV.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is set to depart the country this evening (13) for a four-day state visit to the People’s Republic of China. This visit, taking place from January 14 to 17, is being undertaken at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. During the visit, President Dissanayake will hold discussions with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang, as well as engage with other senior Chinese officials to strengthen diplomatic ties.

A shortage of tamarind in the local market has caused the retail price to soar above Rs. 2,000 per kilogram in the Hatton area, sellers said. They said previously the retail price of a kilogram of tamarind ranged from Rs. 350 to Rs. 400. However, the price has now significantly increased. According to traders, the shortage is attributed to a poor tamarind harvest this season.

The main suspect in the abduction of a girl from Gampola has been arrested alongside the victim in the Ampara area, police said. Police Spokesman SSP Buddhika Manathunga said that three police teams have been investigating the case after the girl was abducted by a group of individuals who arrived in a van in Daulagala.

The ongoing red rice shortage has particularly impacted the Hindu community, which is struggling to obtain the essential ingredient needed for upcoming Thai Pongal celebrations.

Four newly appointed Supreme Court Justices took their oaths of office before President Anura Kumara Disanayake this morning (12) at the Presidential Secretariat.

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has announced that a decision regarding the electricity tariff reduction for 2025 will be made before Friday (17).

The Alcohol and Drug Information Centre (ADIC) revealed that a 20% excise tax increase on alcohol last year led to a staggering reduction of 8.3 million litres in alcohol consumption while boosting government revenue by Rs. 11.6 billion.

The Vehicle Importers’ Association of Sri Lanka has warned that import taxes on vehicles, currently about 300%, could rise further, with some luxury vehicles potentially seeing tax rates as high as 600%.

Singapore and Japan break away from the group of six countries that shared top spot last year to secure gold and silver, respectively, on the 2025 Henley Passport Index, which ranks all the world’s 199 passports according to the number of destinations they can access visa-free, and is based on exclusive Timatic data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Senior Professor of Forensic Medicine at Karapitiya Hospital U.C.P Perera said it was a matter of serious concern that the fatalities in road accidents have been increasing at a large proportion every year and that 118,240 road accidents had occurred in Sri Lanka for the last five years up to December 2024 claiming 12,140 human lives.