News
Ex-Army Chief’s services to the nation stressed
9th General Deshamanya Dennis Perera Oration
Navy Commander Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera recalled the pioneering work done by General Deshamanya Dennis Perera to establish a Defence Academy during his tenure as the eighth Commander of the Sri Lanka Army. The plot of land ‘’Kandawala Wattha’ belonging to General Sir John Kotelawala, then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka was utilized to establish this Defence Academy, the Navy Chief said.
VA Perera said so delivering the 9th General Deshamanya Dennis Perera oration organized by the Association of Retired Flag Rank Officers (ARFRO) at the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) Auditorium recently.
Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera said that he was humbly proud as the Commander of the Navy to be able to deliver the memorial oration for General Deshamanya Dennis Perera, as the first service commander to emerge from the Kotelawala Defense University. The Navy Chief remembered General Deshamanya Dennis Perera’s invincible contribution to the motherland through his exceptional leadership qualities to bequeath capable officers of the three-armed forces. The General’s remarkable contributions to the nation, both in his capacity as a diplomatic officer and during his tenure as the Chancellor of KDU for the longest time, following his retirement from military service was also stressed.
The Navy Chief also dealt with non-traditional maritime challenges and the evolving dynamics under the theme of ‘GRAY ZONE MARITIME CONFLICT’S OVERSPILL TO INDIAN OCEAN’. He emphasized that in contemporary times, both state and non-state actors worldwide are veering away from conventional face-to-face conflicts of the past. Instead, they leverage advancements in Diplomatic, Information, Military and Economic domains to pursue their objectives and interests to the fullest extent.
Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera elucidated these points in a presentation, highlighting how these emerging trends, which transcend traditional diplomatic boundaries, have also encroached upon the Indian Ocean.
He said that the impact of maritime conflicts occurring in such a background not only affect regional and non-regional states, but also Sri Lanka, an island nation located in a strategically important position in the Indian Ocean, and pointed out it is important for all maritime stakeholders to act collectively to overcome such maritime challenges.
During an operation conducted in the dark hours of 22 Feb 26, the Sri Lanka Navy seized an Indian fishing boat and apprehended twelve (12) Indian fishermen while they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters, in the sea area south of Mannar.
The seized boat and the Indian fishermen were handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Dikovita for onward legal proceedings.
FSL assures legal backing for them
Families of those sentenced to death by the Three-member Gampaha High Trial-at-Bar, over the killing of SLPP MP Amarakeerthi Atukorale, and his police bodyguard, met a senior official of the Presidential Secretariat, yesterday (23), to seek backing for their move to appeal against the verdict.
Having made representations, they addressed the media, outside the Presidential Secretariat, where they declared their intention to move the higher court against the decision.
The SLPP MP and his security officer were killed by an Aragalaya mob on 09 May, 2022, at Nittambuwa. The same day Aragalaya mobs unleashed violence against the then government MPs across the country, torching dozens of their properties.
The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) yesterday said that they would help the families of those sentenced to death to move court against the Gampaha High Court Trial-at-Bar decision. Responding to The Island queries, FSP spokesman Pubudu Jayagoda said that their representatives had already met the families and necessary work was being done to move the Supreme Court. Twenty three persons were acquitted and four handed six-month prison terms, suspended for five years
Jayagoda said that one of the HC judges differed in the ruling. Asked whether they received backing from any other political party and groups that had been involved in the 2022 protest campaign to defend those who had been found guilty, Jayagoda said such support was lacking.
The JVP/NPP played a significant role in the violent protest campaign that forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down. Pointing out that the Attorney General, too, was appealing against the court decision on the basis that the number of persons sentenced to death should be much higher, Jayagoda said that the Nittambuwa incident couldn’t be examined in isolation without taking into consideration the SLPP goon attack on Galle Face protesters on 09 May, 2022. (SF)
Offshore Patrol Vessel P 628 of the Sri Lanka Navy departed Baltimore, USA, for Colombo, on 20 February.
The ex-United States Coast Guard Cutter, USCGC Decisive was officially handed over to the SLN on 02 December, 2025, as the latest addition to the SLN fleet, under the Pennant Number P 628.
Measuring 64 metres in length, this ‘B-Type Reliance Class 210-foot Cutter’ is equipped with advanced technological systems and facilities, capable of conducting extensive surveillance operations spanning up to 6,000 nautical miles per patrol.
The vessel’s voyage to Colombo is historic, possibly marking the longest-ever passage undertaken by a Sri Lanka Navy ship. Covering approximately 14,775 nautical miles, the journey will see the P 628 navigate from Baltimore through the Atlantic Ocean, the Panama Canal (a first for a Sri Lankan naval vessel), the Pacific Ocean, and into the Indian Ocean, via the Straits of Malacca. The ship is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka during the first week of May, 2026.
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Fair weather will prevail except for showers in the Southern province and in Rathnapura, Monaragala and Kaluthara districts after 2.00 p.m
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