Sri Lanka

World News

Sri Lankan president revokes emergency amid growing protests

1:35am April 06, 2022

by The Associated Press

Anti-government public protests initially began over shortages of essentials such as cooking gas, petrol, electricity and milk powder and have spread to every part of the Indian Ocean island nation.

A Sri Lankan couple with their infant join an anti government protest during a curfew in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Sunday.

World News

Sri Lanka's cabinet resigns as public defies curfew amid a historic economic crisis

6:38am April 04, 2022

by The Associated Press

The political crisis comes amid growing public outrage over shortages of food, fuel and medicines.

Smoke billows from the Singapore-registered container ship X-Press Pearl on Wednesday. The ship carries more than 80 containers of dangerous goods, including 25 tons of nitric acid.

Sri Lanka Faces An Environmental Disaster As A Ship Full Of Chemicals Starts Sinking

4:05pm June 02, 2021

by Laurel Wamsley

Beaches are coated with plastic pellets, and a container full of nitric acid has leaked. Sri Lankan authorities are now making preparations for an oil spill.

People look at a dead pilot whale Tuesday on the beach in Panadura, Sri Lanka. Rescuers and volunteers raced to save more than 100 pilot whales stranded on Sri Lanka's western coast.

World News

Sri Lankan Navy, Villagers Save 120 Whales After Mass Beaching

2:43pm November 03, 2020

by Jaclyn Diaz

The Sri Lankan navy and local villagers rescued more than 100 short-finned pilot whales that became stranded on a beach south of the capital, Colombo.

China has built a massive international shipping port a few miles from the old fishing port of Hambantota, Sri Lanka.

World News

In Sri Lanka, China's Building Spree Is Raising Questions About Sovereignty

10:02am December 13, 2019

by Lauren Frayer

A Chinese state-owned operator took control of a port on a 99-year lease after Sri Lanka defaulted on its loans. An adviser to Sri Lanka's president said the government wants China to "give it back."

Security personnel stand guard at St. Anthony's Church on April 24 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The church was among three targeted in this year's Easter Sunday attacks.

World News

Before Sri Lanka's Easter Attacks, Muslims' Warnings About Terrorism Went Unheeded

9:10am December 12, 2019

by Lauren Frayer

Mohammad Taslim tried to warn authorities about other Muslims who'd been radicalized. He was shot soon after. Two men he flagged are now under arrest for links to Sri Lanka's Easter terrorist attacks.

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Ilagan Udaya Kumari (from left), 50, whose husband went missing; Analaxmi Ariaratnam, 70, whose son disappeared; and Sangara Pilay Vanalogini, 53, whose son went missing. Mothers and other relatives of some of the tens of thousands of people who disappear

World News

Sri Lanka's Front-Runner Strikes Fear Among Tamils Who Blame Him For Disappearances

11:50am November 14, 2019

by Lauren Frayer

Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the civil war-era defense secretary, is considered a hero to many majority Buddhists but the prospect of his winning Saturday's presidential election terrifies some minorities.

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Sri Lankan soldiers lower the national flag in Colombo on Sunday. President Maithripala Sirisena banned face coverings under an emergency law that went into effect Monday.

Sri Lanka Bans Face Coverings After Easter Sunday Attacks

1:11pm April 29, 2019

by Sasha Ingber

The move by President Maithripala Sirisena was meant to help authorities identify people, part of a new security push after a wave of bombings left the country reeling.

Kyle Fox, 4, and his father Brady Fox hold a sign at a Sunday vigil held to support the Chabad of Poway synagogue. A teenager opened fire at the synagogue near San Diego on Saturday, killing one and injuring three others.

Poway Shooting Latest In Series of Attacks On Places Of Worship

5:35pm April 28, 2019

by Shannon Van Sant

Over the past few months shootings and bombings have targeted churches, mosques and synagogues spanning three continents.

Police officers patrol the area around Dawatagaha mosque ahead of prayers on Friday in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

World News

Sri Lanka's Military Reports 15 Deaths In Shootout During Search For Bomb Suspects

11:43pm April 26, 2019

by Laurel Wamsley

A spokesman says bodies, including children, were found in a house where soldiers pursued suspects tied to Islamist militants. The U.S. government urged Americans to reconsider travel to Sri Lanka.