Heavy rains slowed the search Sunday for victims of a major mudslide on a tea plantation in central Sri Lanka that police say left 38 people missing and presumed dead, officials said.
A military official said rains were creating problems for rescuers using heavy equipment to dig through tonnes of mud at the site in the picturesque Koslanda region, around 200 kilometres (125 miles) east of Colombo.
Full StoryPope Francis will visit Sri Lanka as planned in January, officials said Sunday despite signs of concern from the Vatican that the government intends to exploit the trip for political gain as it readies for snap elections.
"Pope Francis has graciously accepted the president's invitation, and the Vatican has confirmed that His Holiness will be visiting Sri Lanka in January 2015," the office of President Mahinda Rajapakse said in a statement.
Full StorySniffer dogs were brought in Friday to join the search for bodies at a tea plantation in Sri Lanka, two days after a major mudslide buried alive scores of people.
After the operation was suspended on Thursday afternoon because of fresh rains, searching resumed at daybreak with a team of sniffer dogs joining hundreds of troops already at the site of the tragedy in the picturesque Koslanda region, around 200 kilometers (125 miles) east of Colombo.
Full StorySri Lankan soldiers stepped up their search Thursday for 100 people feared buried alive in a landslide at a tea plantation, but there was little hope of finding any survivors.
Hundreds of troops using heavy diggers clawed through tonnes of mud that buried scores of tin-roofed homes at the picturesque plantation in the island's center on Wednesday.
Full StoryAround 100 people were buried alive in a tea-growing region of Sri Lanka Wednesday as mudslides triggered by monsoon rains washed away their homes on a plantation, disaster officials said.
One witness spoke of hearing a noise like thunder as part of a mountainside collapsed onto the estate, burying some of the workers' homes in 30 feet (nine meters) of mud and debris.
Full StoryMudslides triggered by monsoon rains swept through a tea-growing region of Sri Lanka on Wednesday, killing at least 16 people and leaving about 300 more feared missing, disaster officials said.
The landslides hit a well-known tea plantation east of Colombo in the early morning and some homes were buried in 30 feet (nine meters) of mud, officials said.
Full StorySri Lanka will hold a presidential election in January -- almost two years ahead of schedule -- with Mahinda Rajapakse seeking a third term, the information minister said Monday.
An early election had been widely expected. But the remarks by minister Keheliya Rambukwella were the first confirmation that Rajapakse is seeking a fresh mandate after removing the two-term limit on the presidency soon after winning re-election in 2010.
Full StorySri Lanka's defense ministry Wednesday announced new curbs on foreigners, including journalists, visiting the island's former war zone and said the action was to protect "national security."
Foreign passport-holders will require approval from the defense ministry if they want to travel to the battle-scarred northern province, military spokesman Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya said.
Full StoryChina's President Xi Jinping held talks Tuesday with his Sri Lankan counterpart, seeking to strengthen defense ties with the strategically located Indian Ocean nation that could provoke unease in neighboring India.
China is increasingly asserting its influence in Sri Lanka, a midway point on one of the world's busiest international shipping lanes.
Full StorySri Lankan rights activists have gone to the country's highest court in a bid to stop the government summarily deporting Afghan, Iranian and Pakistani refugees, their lawyer said Saturday.
Six human rights defenders have petitioned the Supreme Court to challenge the expulsions, which are being carried out despite warnings that Sri Lanka is in breach of its international obligations, lawyer Lakshan Dias told Agence France Presse.
Full Story