Oct 29 (AI) A new bill before Sri Lanka’s parliament that grants the authorities sweeping arbitrary powers to tackle organized crime and deny suspects’ human rights should be immediately withdrawn, Amnesty International said today. The Prevention of Organised Crimes bill, tabled in SL’s parliament on 6 Oct, contains provisions that would make confessions extracted under duress admissible in court, more..

Oct 29 (DM) Every crisis changes who holds the advantage. It favours those who see early, act with purpose and keep their nerve. The Iran War 2026 is such a moment. It began on 28th February, when the United States and Israel struck Iran’s nuclear and military sites and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the opening attack. Iran answered with thousands of drones and missiles. By 10th May, the UAE’s Ministry of Defence said its air defence had intercepted nearly 2,850 of them. more..

Oct 29 (ST) As the current IMF programme is approaching its conclusion in March 2027, Sri Lanka must confront a difficult question, which is being one of the hot topics of the day: Should the govt seek yet another IMF programme – of course, the 18th programme? Or should the policy makers take a decisive step to bring this vicious cycle of repeated bailouts to an end? The answer is not, however, a political decision, although we have not hesitated to make such decisions in the past. more..

Oct 29 (SO) Good news for SL all around as our island nation has received a major boost in int'l tourism after Arugam Bay was named Asia’s best beach in the Condé Nast Traveller Readers’ Choice Awards 2026, with three other SL beaches also securing places among the region’s top 20. Arugam Bay, the celebrated surfing destination on Sri Lanka's Eastern Coast, topped the Asian rankings with an impressive score of 98.84, more..

Oct 29 (TM) With the first anniversary of Cyclone Ditwah approaching fast, the risk of landslides in the hill country remains a matter of serious concern. NBRI has warned repeatedly this year that slopes weakened during the cyclone could fail even under moderate rainfall. The scale of the problem is not in doubt. During Cyclone Ditwah, some mountainous areas received over 500 mm of rain within 24 hours, against the 150 mm threshold at which landslides are considered likely. more..

Oct 29 (TM) No discussion about foreign policy is complete without acknowledging geopolitical realities. The world is entering an era often described as the great fragmentation, creating growing uncertainty and instability in international affairs. Recently, at the Bay of Bengal Conversation in Bangladesh, several geopolitical experts discussed the major crises shaping global politics today. The event was organised by the Centre for Governance Studies. more..

Oct 28 (NW) Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake met with representatives of tourism industry associations at the Presidential Secretariat today to discuss strategies for achieving national targets of generating US$ 10 billion in tourism revenue and attracting five million tourists to SL by 2030. The session involved extensive discussions on key steps required to further promote and expand the country’s tourism sector. Particular attention was given to enhancing domestic air travel facilities, more..

Oct 28 (EN) SL’s Welfare Benefits Board (WBB) has removed 331,653 unqualified individuals from the Aswesuma welfare registry while adding 153,511 newly eligible beneficiaries following an extensive re-certification process. The board officially published its first updated list on Wednesday, confirming that 991,800 individuals have qualified to receive cash benefits under the Poor and Extremely Poor categories. Under the updated findings, 628,658 individuals qualified more..

Oct 28 (DN) Our Govt’s vision is to provide opportunities for wrongdoers to transform their lives and rejoin society as good citizens while enforcing the Law, which is the true meaning of rehabilitation, Minister Harshana Nanayakkara stated. He said that a Prison is not a separate world isolated from society, but a reflection of the country’s own society and the Govt’s goal is to build a Prison system that upholds Rule of Law, more..

Oct 28 (TM) Some people displaced by Cyclone Ditwah are reluctant to leave relief camps where they continue to receive Government assistance, despite ongoing efforts to relocate them to safer housing, an official from the Defence Ministry said. Additional Secretary (Disaster Management Division) at the Ministry, Dharmathilaka Gamage said that the Government continued to provide necessary facilities to camp residents while working to provide permanent housing solutions. more..

Oct 28 (Island) India International Centre (IIC), Delhi in collaboration with the Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo launched the SAMHiTA (South Asian Manuscript Histories and Textual Archive) Palm-Leaf Manuscript Digitisation Project at the Gangaramaya Temple, on Friday (23). The Project is undertaken with the financial assistance from the Indian govt. Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha attended the launch ceremony and a site visit at the Temple. Venerable Dr. Kirinde Assaji Thera, more..

Oct 28 (Island) Former Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris has warned that the NPP govt plans to grant police powers to the armed forces and confer sweeping powers on the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence under the proposed Protection of the State from Terrorism Bill. Prof. Peiris explained how the proposed legislation could be used to silence the democratic Opposition and suppress the media. The former MP said the Bill posed a grave threat more..

Oct 28 (NW) Mohamed Shareef Adam Lebbe, alias Gafoor Mama, has been sentenced to 12 years of rigorous imprisonment after pleading guilty to charges related to the possession and collection of explosives and other prohibited materials at a property in Lactowatta, Wanathavilluwa. The sentence was imposed by the Colombo Special Trial-at-Bar today, after the 63-year-old defendant, who is the third accused in the case, pleaded guilty to five charges filed against him. more..

Oct 28 (NW) Permanent Trial-at-Bar of the Colombo High Court today ordered that MP Namal Rajapaksa, who is currently in remand custody over the controversial Airbus transaction, be produced before court through prison authorities on Nov 19. The order was issued when Rajapaksa was produced before the Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar today in connection with the case. Rajapaksa was produced following an order issued by Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama more..

Oct 28 (DM) Former Board of Investment (BOI) Chairman Thilan Wijesinghe has sought an investigation as to how he came to be named in a High Court case where his lawyers could not trace any reference, in a list of 50 corruption cases tabled in Parliament, after Leader of the House Bimal Rathnayake withdrew his name last week, he said. Minister Bimal Rathnayake tabled the 10-page document on October 8 to counter claims that the Govt was pursuing political revenge. more..

Oct 28 (AD) Human Rights Commission of SL has summoned the Officer-in-Charge of the Homagama Police Station and two other officers to appear before the Commission to provide information regarding the death of a man reportedly found dead inside a police cell at the station. The officers have been summoned to appear tomorrow, according to Commissioner Attorney-at-Law Nimal G. Punchihewa. As part of its investigation into the incident, Human Rights Commission has more..

Oct 28 (Island) As the US pushes for new commercial opportunities for their businesses across the Indian Ocean, American Ambassador in Colombo Eric Meyer yesterday addressed port stakeholders from SL, Bangladesh, India, and Maldives at a U.S. Embassy-hosted regional workshop showcasing how trusted, secure American technology could transform maritime trade. Bringing together regional port decisionmakers and more..

Oct 28 (AD) Crime-Branch OIC of the Homagama Police has been arrested by the Western Province South Crime Division in connection with the death of a young man while in police custody. Meanwhile, the service of three officers attached to the Homagama Police, including the arrested officer, has been interdicted in connection with the incident. The deceased, a 29-year-old father of two and a resident of Kiriwaththuduwa, was arrested by Homagama Police officers at Pitipana Junction on Oct 25, more..

Oct 28 (CI) England arrived in Pakistan this month hopeful that the dynamics of a tri-series would give them the chance to experience the pressure of knockout games ahead of next year's World Cup. Instead, Thursday's fixture against SL will evoke unwelcome memories of the 2023 edition, when they finished the tournament with a series of dead-rubbers after an early exit. That is what happens when you manage to come out on the wrong side of an unloseable game - and not just once, more..

Oct 28 (NW) Former Minister Johnston Fernando has informed the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court that he pleads guilty to charges of possessing a luxury BMW vehicle imported into SL without paying the required taxes and committing tax fraud. Fernando conveyed his position to the court through his lawyers in connection with the luxury vehicle that was found abandoned at a private hotel in Colombo. Former minister was arrested more..

Oct 28 (NW) SL Police has rejected reports claiming that the Police Media Spokesperson stated that a suspect arrested with ICE narcotics in Homagama died due to an illness that occurred during a drug raid. In a statement, Police clarified that the reports circulating in the media had falsely attributed such remarks to the Police Media Spokesperson. The clarification relates to the death of a 29-year-old suspect arrested by Homagama Police officers with ICE at Pitipana Junction on Oct 25, 2026. more..

Oct 28 (DM) Plantations and Community Infrastructure Minister Samantha Vidyarathna has called for research-based solutions to increase productivity in Sri Lanka’s coconut industry and address challenges faced by coconut growers. The Minister made these remarks during an inspection tour of the Coconut Research Institute in Lunuwila on October 27, where discussions were held on the institute’s research activities and future development programmes for the coconut industry. more..

Oct 28 (TM) Though Sri Lanka has made progress on realising transition towards renewable energy, transmission capacity, market design, financing channels and digital infrastructure have not kept pace with the ongoing renewable energy (RE) capacity additions; necessitating an integrated system to absorb RE additions, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Research Fellow Dr Erandathie Pathiraja said. Presenting a chapter in the IPS State of the Economy report titled; more..

Oct 28 (TM) Former MP Prof Charitha Herath has questioned whether President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s message congratulating Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on his Election victory appropriately reflects the diplomatic neutrality expected of a Head of State. While acknowledging the gesture, Herath said that Prez Dissanayake was entitled to his ideological preferences and political judgments as an individual and political leader. However, he said that statements more..

Oct 28 (NW) Central Bank has extended its list of prohibited pyramid schemes to 27, following the addition of Max App Media Ltd and its affiliated companies. CBSL announced that investigations had determined that Max App Media Ltd, together with its affiliates Max LK (Pvt) Ltd and Max Media Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, had engaged in, conducted and promoted a prohibited pyramid scheme. The determination was made under more..

Oct 28 (NW) A SriLankan Airlines flight from Colombo to London Heathrow has departed on a replacement aircraft after a suspected bird strike forced pilots to abandon take-off earlier today. SriLankan Airlines said flight UL503, scheduled to depart BIA at 12:55 p.m., experienced a suspected bird strike affecting one of its engines during take-off. The pilots rejected the take-off as a precaution, and the aircraft was subsequently taxied back to the parking stand. more..

Oct 28 (SLN) The musical bands of the Indian Navy and SL Navy performed a joint ensemble at the Galle Face Green in Colombo today (27). The event was held in conjunction with the ongoing visit of the Indian Navy's First Training Squadron (1TS) ships to SL. Commander Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral Harsha De Silva, and officials from the High Commission of India in SL attended the event, which aimed to enhance maritime cooperation and mutual understanding between the two nations. more..

Oct 28 (NW) PM Harini Amarasuriya and US Ambassador to SL Eric Meyer have held discussions on strengthening bilateral cooperation in trade, tourism, maritime security and education. The discussions took place at Temple Trees on Tuesday, during a meeting between the PM and the US Ambassador, accompanied by a delegation. Both sides explored opportunities to expand bilateral trade and economic relations, more..

Oct 28 (NW) Minister of Health Nalinda Jayatissa, has been elected a Vice-Chair of the Fifth Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference (MC-5), which commenced in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday. The conference, held at the UN Conference Centre (UNCC), is jointly organised by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and the Royal Thai Govt. Representing SL, Minister Jayatissa addressed the conference, highlighting the slowdown in global progress more..

Oct 28 (AD) Former Chairman of the National Youth Services Council (NYSC), Lalith Piyum Perera, has been granted bail by the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court. He was arrested by the CIABOC over financial malpractice allegations. He is accused of preparing sublease agreements by misrepresenting a land and the buildings located on it in the Samapura area of Ampara as state property, and subsequently obtaining the property on lease from the National Youth Services Council. more..

Oct 28 (FT) The World Bank has said what many SL taxpayers have long felt. In a recent interview, World Bank Senior Economist Jakob Engel said Sri Lanka’s tax system should be progressive and simple, and focused primarily on taxing those who can most afford to pay. He also called for broadening the base, widening the tax net, and moving from indirect taxes towards direct taxes. The timing matters. As Budget 2027 approaches, the question is no longer whether SL needs more revenue. more..

Oct 28 (FT) On 21 October, the developers of PHP – the engine behind around 70% of the world’s websites – disclosed 2 severe flaws, since nicknamed PHP2Shell, that could let a stranger with no password take control of the computer behind a website. The US National Security Agency then told organisations unable to fix their systems to take them offline, and the South African Presidency, the Finnish Govt and the UK Govt did exactly that within hours, if not days. more..