logo
Sri Lanka sacks top cop over Easter Sunday bombings failure

Sri Lanka sacks top cop over Easter Sunday bombings failure

The Sun2 days ago
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's National Police Commission has dismissed a senior officer for failing to prevent the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings, which left 279 dead, including 45 foreigners.
Nilantha Jayawardena (pic), former head of the State Intelligence Service (SIS), was found guilty on seven counts of negligence by a disciplinary inquiry.
Court records reveal Jayawardena received warnings 17 days before the coordinated suicide attacks on April 21, 2019, targeting hotels and churches. Over 500 people were injured in the bombings.
The Commission stated, 'Considering the gravity of the charges, the Commission decided to give him the maximum punishment.'
Despite being removed as SIS chief after the attacks, Jayawardena was later promoted to deputy police chief before being placed on compulsory leave pending investigation.
A high-level probe implicated former president Maithripala Sirisena and four officials, including Jayawardena, for criminal negligence. Following a Supreme Court order in 2023, they paid over US$1 million in damages to victims.
The bombings were linked to a local jihadist group aligned with Islamic State. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's government has pledged deeper investigations to uncover all responsible parties. - AFP
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

US treasury secretary says Japan trade deal ‘remains possible'
US treasury secretary says Japan trade deal ‘remains possible'

Free Malaysia Today

timean hour ago

  • Free Malaysia Today

US treasury secretary says Japan trade deal ‘remains possible'

US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said a 'mutually benefical' trade agreement between the US and Japan was possible. (EPA Images pic) TOKYO : US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said Friday that a trade deal with Japan remained possible, following talks in Tokyo ahead of the looming Aug 1 imposition of new tariffs. 'A good deal is more important than a rushed deal, and a mutually beneficial trade agreement between the US and Japan remains within the realm of possibility,' Bessent said on X. 'I look forward to continuing formal talks in the future,' Bessent said following discussions with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and trade envoy Ryosei Akazawa. US President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on imports of Japanese cars, steel and aluminium earlier this year. Trump sent letters to Japan and a string of other countries earlier this month informing them that higher import tariffs will kick in on Aug 1 unless they reach a deal with the US. For Japanese imports, the additional tariff was set at 25%. It was the second time the US president has set a deadline after he postponed tariffs on almost all countries in April for 90 days. Recent weak export data, including a sharp drop in vehicle exports to the US, raised fears that Japan, the world's fourth-largest economy, could tip into a technical recession. Trump this week poured cold water on the prospects of an agreement, saying Japan won't 'open up their country'. Earlier this month, Ishiba, who faces tough upper house elections on Sunday that could end his premiership, said: 'We will not easily compromise.'

Trump says ‘good chance' of hostage deal with Hamas ‘during the week'
Trump says ‘good chance' of hostage deal with Hamas ‘during the week'

Free Malaysia Today

timean hour ago

  • Free Malaysia Today

Trump says ‘good chance' of hostage deal with Hamas ‘during the week'

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from Joint Base Andrews to Morristown, New Jersey. (AP pic) MORRISTOWN : US President Donald Trump said on Sunday there was a 'good chance' of a hostage deal with Hamas 'during the week,' ahead of his upcoming meeting with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu. 'I think there's a good chance we have a deal with Hamas… during the coming week,' Trump told reporters amid mounting pressure on the Israeli prime minister to agree to a ceasefire and end the war in Gaza after almost two years. Netanyahu said Sunday he hoped his talks in Washington could 'help advance' a Gaza ceasefire deal. Trump and Netanyahu are scheduled to meet at the White House on Monday – the Israeli prime minister's third visit since Trump returned to power in January. Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas were underway in Qatar Sunday. 'We've gotten a lot of the hostages out, but pertaining to the remaining hostages, quite a few of them will be coming out,' Trump added. He said the US was 'working on a lot of things' with Israel, including 'probably a permanent deal with Iran.' Trump also repeated claims that US strikes 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear facilities during the 12-day Iran-Israel conflict. Since the start of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, mediators have brokered pauses in fighting during which hostages were freed in exchange for Israel-held Palestinian prisoners. Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Israel's military campaign, lack of food and dire humanitarian conditions for more than 2 million people in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 57,418 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable. Hamas's October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Trump tariffs force Greek olive oil producers to seek new markets
Trump tariffs force Greek olive oil producers to seek new markets

Free Malaysia Today

timean hour ago

  • Free Malaysia Today

Trump tariffs force Greek olive oil producers to seek new markets

Greece, the fifth-largest exporter of olive oil to the US, ships about 8,000-10,000 tonnes there annually. (EPA Images pic) VARVASAINA : Greek olive oil producer Konstantinos Papadopoulos wasted little time when the threat of US tariffs was floated by president Donald Trump in the spring. He immediately started looking for alternative buyers around the world. Within weeks, his family-run company had found a new buyer in Brazil, where Portuguese olive oil typically dominates. His first shipment of 15,000 bottles is expected to arrive in the port of Itapoa in two weeks. When Reuters visited his farm on Friday, Papadopoulos was close to sealing a separate deal with a new customer in Australia. 'I think we learned a lesson from Trump not to rely with all our strength on one market… and to always have alternatives,' Papadopoulos said in his olive oil mill and bottling plant, surrounded by thousands of bottles and huge tanks filled with the golden liquid. Trump announced a 30% tariff on European products that has sent shivers through industries from wine and peaches to cars. Papadopoulos' decision shows just how wide the fallout could be as producers grow weary even of the threats of tariffs. Greece, the fifth-largest exporter of olive oil to the US, ships about 8,000-10,000 tonnes there annually. Three of the other top producers – Spain, Italy and Portugal – are in Europe and face the same conundrum. The industry is huge for Greece, whose rolling hills are filled with groves of ancient, crooked olive trees. The Papadopoulos family company exported 350 tonnes of extra virgin olive oil in 2024 to the US, about one-third of its total exports, and 100 tonnes so far this year. He estimates that if Trump's tariff materialises sales to the US will fall by about 40% this year. 'While we had built all our infrastructure based on a large scale on the American market, suddenly we see it disappearing,' Papadopoulos said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store