War crimes accused commander heads Colombo’s operational command

by Thusiyan
May 6, 2019

Sri Lanka has appointed Major General Sathyapriya Liyanage, a man accused of overseeing war crimes a decade ago, as head of the Overall Operational Command in Colombo in the wake of the Easter Sunday attacks last week.

Liyange was head of Task Force 3, during the Sri Lanka military’s 2009 offensive that killed tens of thousands of Tamils and saw the shelling of hospitals, widespread sexual violence and the execution of those who attempted to surrender.

Task Force 3 was “particularly involved in the final weeks of the conflict” said the OHCHR investigation on Sri Lanka, a United Nations mandated investigation into the concluding phase of the armed conflict. The unit was also informed of the coordinates of the Vallipunam Hospital, which was directly hit by artillery fire in those final weeks.

See more from the OISL here.

His appointment comes as Sri Lanka ramped up its security presence across the island, with multiple search and raid operations taking place.
 

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Amaran - Problematic propaganda

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The genre of war epic makes its grand re-entry to Tamil cinema with director Rajkumar Periasamy’s sophomore feature film, ‘Amaran.’ As is often the case with this genre, one cannot help but feel the events of the ‘true story’ onscreen have been heavily modified for easy consumption.

 

 

 

The patriotic military films of Tamil cinema had taken a back seat for a while. The subject matter is now seldom a prominent theme of a film, instead lurking in the shadows peeking through such as via the heroes in the works of Nelson Dilipkumar. The genre of war epic makes its grand re-entry to Tamil cinema with director Rajkumar Periasamy’s sophomore feature film, ‘Amaran.’ As is often the case with this genre, one cannot help but feel the events of the ‘true story’ onscreen have been heavily modified for easy consumption.

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Krishna's rating: 2.5 stars

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Official trailer for film below.

UN Special Committee finds Israel warfare methods in Gaza consistent with Genocide

un_spcial

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(b) Leverage their influence to ensure Israel ceases its policies and practices negatively affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories;  

(c) Halt all offensive arms transfers, including weapons, explosives, guns and/or ammunition, to Israel;

(d) Hold nationals, including those with dual Israeli citizenship, involved in settler violence or violations in Gaza, accountable for violations of international law;  

(e) Review financial transfer policies that allow religious and charitable organizations to fund activities in Israel, which enable the further sustenance of an apartheid system;  

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(j) Fully cooperate with the International Criminal Court. 

Read more here

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