President Félix Tshisekedi has been declared the winner of Democratic Republic of Congo’s election, which has been condemned as a “sham” by several opposition candidates demanding a rerun. The president won about 73% of the vote, with his nearest challenger, Moise Katumbi, on 18%, officials said. The 20 December election was marred by widespread logistical […]

Sri Lanka’s inflation rose to 4.0 percent in December, the third consecutive monthly rise as the cash-strapped nation was set to increase taxes from the New Year.The benchmark Colombo Consumer Price Index jumped by 1.7 points to reach 195.1, or a 4.0 percent increase compared to a year ago when inflation was 57.2 percent. The […]

Sam Bankman-Fried, who once ran one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges and is facing decades in jail, will not face another trial, US prosecutors say. The 31-year-old was found guilty of fraud and money laundering last month. Prosecutors said the “strong public interest” in a resolution of their case against the former billionaire outweighed […]

The Pathfinder Foundation has formed a Study Group of Experts to develop a blueprint and framework aimed at doubling Sri Lanka’s economic growth rate through accelerated economic integration and infrastructural connectivity with India. The framework document is expected to be formally launched in March 2024. Most economic forecasts place Sri Lanka on an average growth trajectory of 3% per […...

South Africa has filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) alleging that Israel is engaging in “genocidal acts” in Gaza. The UN court confirmed the proceedings concerning alleged violations of Israel’s obligations under the Genocide Convention. Israel has strongly rejected the allegation, calling it “baseless”. “Israel rejects with disgust the blo...

China has named Dong Jun as its new defence minister, two months after his predecessor was officially sacked. Dong, a former navy commander, takes over from Li Shangfu – who was last seen in public in August. Mr Dong’s appointment was announced by China’s top legislators at a Standing Committee meeting of the National People’s […]

The leader of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, has visited neighbouring Ethiopia, where he has had discussions on the end of the war between the RSF and Sudan’s army. Dagalo, known as “Hemedti”, landed in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, on Thursday in the second stop of his first known public […]

A court in Qatar has commuted the death sentences of eight former Indian naval officers, India’s foreign ministry has said. A ministry statement said the “sentences have been reduced” but did not specify what new penalty they would face. Neither Qatar nor India have revealed the specific charges against the men. FT and Reuters have […]

The Foreign Ministry announced yesterday (27) that Heart to Heart International, US, has so far donated medicines and equipment worth approximately Rs 15 bn. The Ministry said that this included the 9th consignment to be dispatched from the US soon. The latest donation includes an appropriate volume of – (1) Amlodipine besylate which is used […]

Outgoing New Zealand High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Michael Appleton yesterday (27 Dec.), met with TNA leader R. Sampanthan. Taking to ‘X’ (formerly Twitter), Appleton said that several matters of concern were discussed at the meeting, including political developments in the North and East. They also discussed the approaches adopted by both New Zealand and […]

by Rex Clementine   Given the huge strides that India have taken in cricket these recent years, you sensed that this was the best opportunity for Rohit Sharma’s side to win a first ever Test series in South Africa. Although India have an excellent record in Australia in recent years, a series win in South […]

The end-November 2023 acid attack on former Shehzad Akbar at his London home by suspected ISI agents is a stark reminder that Pakistan’s military does not tolerate those who question the deep state. Soon after the incident a senior Tory MP claimed that the attack was carried out by an agent of the ISI. Shahzad […]

‘Ministry cooperating with CID on Immunoglobulin probe’ By Shamindra Ferdinando Health Minister Dr. Ramesh Pathirana yesterday (26) said that in case the government had to make emergency purchases, his Ministry would adhere to procedures laid down by the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Pathirana said so when The Island asked him whether he intended to […]

by Dr Upul Wijayawardhana Reading “From heyday to ‘hay day’”, the hard-hitting editorial laced with sarcasm (The Island, 18 December) and “Declining power and challenges before SLPP” by Shamindra Ferdinando in the Midweek Review of 20th December, I began wondering whether the recently concluded SLPP convention was the final flicker before the flame was extinguished […...

Wednesday 27th December, 2023 Perhaps, nothing represents Sri Lankans’ resentment towards the new tax regime and the aggravation of their economic woes better than the title of today’s comment; it is a literal translation of a slogan written on the rear of a tuk-tuk. It however is relevant only to the ordinary people who pay […]

Sri Lanka received over 1.4 million tourists by the end of the third week of December, the latest statistics released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) show. The SLTDA weekly report on tourist arrivals released on Saturday (23) shows that 1,404,998 tourists had arrived in the country by December 21, 2023. Between December 01 and 21 […]

by Jehan Perera The change that the country is looking for lies in the future. The change that the government has brought may have been sufficient unto the day, especially for the upper classes and the international community they fraternise with, but insufficient for the future progress and wellbeing of the masses of people.  This […]