Celebrating Victory

Supporters of UPFA candidate Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon celebrating victory, after he topped the Matale District preferential vote list securing 51,591 votes at the Central Provincial Council elections. Pix by Kanchana Ariyadasa

Pakistan church blast 'kills 40'

A bomb blast outside a church in the Pakistani city of Peshawar kills at least 40 people and injured more than 40, medics say

Eye clinic and blood donation

An eye clinic and blood donation campaign organised by the Wijayaba Welfare Society at Kalapaluwewa was held today. UNP Parliamentarian Eran Wickramaratne and Western Provincial Councillor Roger Seneviratne participated at the event. Pix by Waruna Wanniarachchi

Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon tops in Matale

UPFA candidate Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon, son of Minister Janaka Bandara Tennakoon, has obtained the highest number of preferential votes from the Matale District securing 51,591 votes at the Central Provincial Council electionsPictures

20 more Indian fishermen arrested

Twenty fishermen from coastal town were arrested by Sri Lankan naval personnel when they were fishing in the Palk Straits early this morning, a top fisheries department official said

UPFA wins NWP and CP

The UPFA secured a convincing victory in the North Western and Central Provincial Council elections obtaining 34 seats in the NWP and 36 seats in the CP View Results

MR leaves for New York

President Mahinda Rajapaksa, left this morning on a five-day visit to New York to address the 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), at the UN headquarters in New York, the President’s Office said.

TNA wins the northern PC

The Tamil National Alliance has won the northern provincial council election as it bagged 30 seats out of 38, official results show.

TNA wins postal votes in Mullaitivu, Kilinochchi

The Tamil National Alliance has secured the postal votes in the Mullaitivu and the Kilinochchi districts with 646 votes (81.26%) and 756 votes (82%) respectively, in the Northern Provincial Council election, concluded this evening.

Mahela was in the SriLankan flight

Former Sri Lankan cricket captain Mahela Jayawardena was one of the 267 passengers on board the SriLankan Airlines flight that made an emergency landing in Stanstead Airport, London today, the Daily Mirror online learns.

Polls fairly free and fair: Polls Chief

Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya said that the elections were by large free and fair and the results of the elections in the three provinces could be expected before 6 am on Sunday.

Bomb hoax: Fighter jets deployed

Typhoon fighter jets of the Royal Air Force were scrambled on Friday night after reports of a disturbance on an aircraft, the UK's Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

World Alzeimer Day

An awareness march organised by Lanka Alzheimer’s Foundation to mark the World Alzeimer day (September 21) began today from the Cinnamon Grand hotel and marched towards Bambalapitiya. Pix by Waruna Wanniarachchi

Seven hurt in Panvila stampede

At least seven people were injured in a stampede that ensued after a group fired into the air near the Kelabokke polling booth at Panvila in Kandy this afternoon, election monitors said

Queen, NZ PM to hold talks on SL

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key and Queen Elizabeth II are to discuss about Sri Lanka which is hosting the next Commonwealth heads of Government meeting in November, One news Channel reported

Lankan nabbed in Kuwait

Hawalli patrolmen apprehended a Sri Lankan expatriate in Kuwait for possessing drug paraphernalia, reports Al-Seyassah daily

30 to 35 percent turnout in Jaffna

A voter turnout of about 30 - 35% was recorded in Jaffna by 10 am at today’s Northern Provincial Council election and election monitoring bodies have claimed a lack of enthusiasm among voters during the ongoing Provincial Council polls held in the all three provinces

After 25 years...

Ethnic Tamils wait in line to cast their votes at a polling station during the first provincial polls in 25 years in Jaffna today-Reuters

Navi Pillay lashes back at Sri Lanka claims

The United Nations' top human rights official lashed back Friday at the Sri Lankan government, accusing some of its most senior officials of waging a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting her and her office

Foreign teams to study Kurugala prehistoric human remains

Bio-anthologists from the Oxford and Cambridge universities will arrive in Sri Lanka in November to enhance studies on the recently unearthed human skeletal remains from the Kuragala prehistoric site, the Archaeology Department said yesterday

Two killed in accident

Two people were killed when a lorry collided head on with a car at Aladeniya on Katugastota-Kurunegala road last night, police said

Voting at PC election in progress

Voting at the North, North Western and Central Provinces began at 7.00 am this morning  and will continue till 4.00pm in the evening today

SL plane in emergency landing

A Sri Lankan Airlines plane travelling from Colombo to Heathrow was forced to make an emergency landing at Stansted Airport in London, police said

Video: Ballot boxes to be shuffled to ensure secrecy

Ballot boxes from different villages and divisional secretariat areas will be shuffled together for the first time at the counting of votes in tomorrow’s provincial council election to ensure secrecy on how people in a certain area have voted, Elections Chief Mahinda Deshapriya said today

Father who cheated disabled son storms newspaper office

A man identifying himself as the father against whom the Colombo Fort Magistrate had issued an arrest warrant on charges of having defrauded his son of Rs.150 million is alleged to have stormed the Ada newspaper office of Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. today and threatened the editorial staff.

ECtHR tells France to postpone expulsion of a Tamil

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has invoked on Thursday article 39 of its Rules indicating an interim measure in a case involving the expulsion of a Tamil from France.

500 monks receive assistance

About five hundred Sri Lankan Buddhist monks received assistance to enhance their education from Taiwanese Bhikkhuni Shin Kai for the 11th time to mark her birthday at the Hunupitiya Gangaramaya Temple today. The event was organised in collaboration with the Kotte Sri Naga Viharaya Chief Incumbent Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera. Pix by Nisal Baduge

UN rights chief accuses SL of slander campaign

The United Nations' rights Chief Navi Pillay, who is investigating allegations of war crimes by Sri Lanka, is the target of a smear campaign by Colombo, her office said Friday

Video: Minister in court

Health Minister Maithiripala Sirisena is seen being greeted as he walks into the Supreme Court when the petition filed by the Ceylon Tobacco Company on Pictorial Warnings was taken up for hearing. The Supreme Court issued an interim order suspending the implementation of the gazette notice. Pix by Nisal Baduge

Wasps kill election officer

A 45-year-old school teacher assigned for election duty at the Pudukulam Central College in Vavuniya was killed in a wasp attack while two other teachers were injured and admitted to Vavuniya Hospital, police said Pictures