Mohammed Rasooldeen

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Sri Lankan navy seizes 800 kg of heroin, meth in record drug bust

dalal.awienat — Sun, 06 Apr 2025 10:54:27 +0000

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Sun, 2025-04-06 13:51

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan naval forces have made a record drug seizure after finding more than 800 kilograms of heroin and crystal methamphetamine on a fishing vessel off the country’s west coast.

The island nation of 22 million people is known as a hub for drug trafficking.

There has been an increase in drug-related incidents in recent years, with about 162,000 people arrested in 2023 for such offenses, government data showed. In 2017, the number was about 81,000.

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Sri Lanka, India forge defense, energy ties during Modi’s visit

kashaf.rehman — Sat, 05 Apr 2025 16:01:07 +0000

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Sat, 2025-04-05 18:58

Colombo: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a ceremonial guard of honor in Colombo on Saturday as his delegation signed energy and defense agreements with Sri Lanka, where New Delhi competes with China for greater influence.
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake rolled out the red carpet for Modi and welcomed him with a 19-gun salute in the capital’s Independence Square.
He also conferred Sri Lanka’s highest civilian honor, Mithra Vibhushan, on the Indian prime minister.

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Sri Lanka, India forge defense, energy ties during Modi’s visit

shounaz.mekky — Sat, 05 Apr 2025 13:26:51 +0000

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Sat, 2025-04-05 16:23

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Indian PM Narendra Modi

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Ramadan festival promotes heritage of Sri Lanka’s Muslim communities

zaynab.khojji — Mon, 24 Mar 2025 15:59:24 +0000

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Mon, 2025-03-24 18:52

COLOMBO: A Ramadan festival in Colombo is promoting the heritage of Sri Lanka’s diverse Muslim communities by showcasing their rich cultures in the heart of the capital.

Muslims make up less than 10 percent of Sri Lanka’s 22 million people, who are predominantly Sinhalese Buddhists.

The Salam Ramadan festival, which opened on Friday and will run until the end of the month, is putting the spotlight on the Moor, Memon, Malay and Dawoodi Bohra ethnic groups.

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Sri Lankan doctors on nationwide strike to demand safety after rape of woman medic

zaynab.khojji — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 12:57:28 +0000

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Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital

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Wed, 2025-03-12 15:51

COLOMBO: Doctors at public health facilities across Sri Lanka went on a nationwide strike on Wednesday to demand better safety measures for healthcare workers following the rape of a woman doctor in the country’s third-largest hospital.

Thousands of doctors and other healthcare workers joined the strike following the incident that took place on Monday at the state-run Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital in the country’s north.

A suspect was arrested on Wednesday morning, but the strike continued as protesters called for greater protections and workplace safety measures.

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Sri Lanka, UAE agree to boost economic ties, investment during Dissanayake visit

Arbee — Thu, 13 Feb 2025 12:46:36 +0000

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Thu, 2025-02-13 15:44

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka and the UAE have signed an agreement to strengthen economic ties during President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s first visit to the Middle East, his office said on Thursday as the island nation seeks to attract more foreign investment.

Dissanayake, who secured the country’s top job in September, returned to Colombo on Thursday after addressing the main session of the 2025 World Government Summit in Dubai and meeting with other world leaders, including UAE Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum.

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Sri Lankan president makes first Middle East trip for World Governments Summit

Arbee — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 10:54:38 +0000

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Mon, 2025-02-10 13:50

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s new president embarked on his first Middle East trip on Monday to participate in the World Governments Summit 2025 in Dubai.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake secured the top job in September, taking over the leadership of a country reeling from the 2022 economic crisis — the worst since its independence in 1948 — and the austerity measures imposed under a bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund.

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Sri Lanka’s first Muslim woman ambassador begins mission in Qatar

ruaa.ameri — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 13:04:11 +0000

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Wed, 2025-01-29 15:47

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s first Muslim woman ambassador officially started her duties this week as she presented her credentials in Qatar.

A career diplomat, Roshan Sithara Khan Azard joined Sri Lanka’s foreign service in 1998 and has served in various capacities at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the most recent post being additional secretary for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and Latin America and the Caribbean.

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��Ƶ set to finance bridge construction in eastern Sri Lanka

seamus.obuachalla — Thu, 23 Jan 2025 14:11:37 +0000

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Thu, 2025-01-23 17:05

COLOMBO: ��Ƶ is to finance a bridge construction project in Sri Lanka’s eastern district of Trincomalee, the Kingdom’s envoy in Colombo said on Thursday.

Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and the Saudi Fund for Development have signed a revised agreement for a $10.5 million infrastructure project in the coastal town of Kinniya that will connect it to the Kurinchakerny peninsula.

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Sri Lankans rally to stop deportation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar

zaynab.khojji — Sun, 12 Jan 2025 14:21:26 +0000

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Sun, 2025-01-12 17:16

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan civil society groups and activists are mobilizing to save more than 100 Rohingya refugees rescued off the Indian Ocean island nation last month following a government announcement that they will be deported.

A group of about 100 Rohingya refugees, which reportedly included over two dozen children, was rescued off the coast of the northeastern Mullaitivu district on Dec. 19.

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Sri Lanka vows crackdown on illegal activities by Israeli tourists

zaynab.khojji — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 14:07:20 +0000

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Wed, 2025-01-08 17:00

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will crack down on reported illegal activities carried out by Israeli tourists, its prime minister said on Wednesday, following a series of complaints since last year regarding their arrivals in the country.

A total of 25,514 Israelis visited Sri Lanka in 2024, according to government data. One of their favorite destinations is Arugam Bay, a small town on the southeastern coast, which is widely recognized as one of the world’s best surfing spots.

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Sri Lanka launches nationwide program to become ‘cleanest country in Asia’

jonathanlessware — Thu, 02 Jan 2025 14:36:16 +0000

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Thu, 2025-01-02 17:25

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's new government has launched a nationwide project aiming to make it the cleanest country in Asia and enforce the principles of environmental justice.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake kicked off the “Clean Sri Lanka” initiative on New Year’s Day, saying it would be focused on restoring the island nation’s environmental system.

Dissanayake, during a launching ceremony at the presidential secretariat in Colombo on Wednesday, said: “This endeavor goes beyond merely cleaning up the environment.

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Sri Lankans demand screenings of Israeli visitors to keep out war criminals

jonathanlessware — Fri, 20 Dec 2024 14:34:06 +0000

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Fri, 2024-12-20 17:20

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan civil society groups protested on Friday to demand special screenings of Israelis arriving in the country after a soldier accused of war crimes in Gaza was spotted in Colombo.

A video of the soldier boasting about the killing of a Palestinian civilian was posted by the Hind Rajab Foundation on Wednesday with an appeal to Sri Lankan authorities to arrest him, as the organization identified the man as staying in the country’s capital.

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Sri Lanka’s new president to keep predecessor’s controversial IMF bailout program

seamus.obuachalla — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 13:55:05 +0000

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Thu, 2024-11-21 16:48

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka plans to finalize a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said during the first sitting of the new Parliament on Thursday, maintaining the bailout program secured by his predecessor.

A delegation from the IMF is in Colombo for the third review of its $2.9 billion program ahead of releasing a new tranche of funds to Sri Lanka’s battered economy.

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