News Today: Former President Rajapaksa rejects UK sanctions, urges Sri Lanka to defend its armed forces.

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has strongly refuted allegations made by the United Kingdom regarding widespread human rights violations by Sri Lanka’s military during the final stages of the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). He urged the Sri Lankan government to stand by and protect its former armed forces personnel from what he calls unjust persecution by foreign nations and organizations.

Rajapaksa made these remarks following the UK government’s recent decision to impose travel bans and freeze the assets of former Chief of Defence Staff Shavendra Silva, former Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda, and former Army Commander Jagath Jayasuriya. The UK alleges that these individuals were involved in serious human rights violations. However, Rajapaksa dismissed these claims as “unproven allegations” and called the sanctions unfair.

The former President also criticized the UK’s decision to sanction Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, also known as ‘Karuna Amman,’ who defected from the LTTE in 2004 and later entered politics. Rajapaksa accused the UK of penalizing anti-LTTE Tamils to appease the Tamil diaspora in Britain.

He further emphasized that the LTTE was designated as the world’s deadliest terrorist organization by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and reminded that the UK had introduced laws in 2021 and 2023 to shield its own military personnel from similar legal actions.

“I categorically reject the UK government’s allegations of widespread human rights violations during the military operations,” Rajapaksa stated. He urged the Sri Lankan government to resolutely defend former military officers who risked their lives for the nation’s security.