Attention of the Cabinet of Ministers have been drawn on the decisions taken by the United Kingdom to impose sanctions on four Sri Lankan individuals recently, and have decided to appoint a committee comprised of three ministers  to submit a report with recommendations on the further measures to be taken after studying the facts in the regard and to empower the committee to obtain the service of any officer/intellect deemed to have subject expertise in the relevant field and considered essential.

The committee will comprise of :

– Vijitha Herath Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism

– Attorney – at – Law  Harshana Nanayakkara Minister of Justice and National Integrity

– Aruna Jayasekara Deputy Minister of Defence

The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs to establish a regional office of the Department of Immigration and Emigration within the Jaffna District Secretariat premises this month.

Four people have been reported killed in attacks by the United States on Yemen’s Hodeidah region,  the latest deadly strikes against Houthi forces as the US announced the deployment of a second aircraft carrier and more warplanes to the Middle East.

Anees Alasbahi, a spokesman for the Houthi health minister, said three people were confirmed killed in the US attack on Tuesday night but that the death toll was preliminary.

“The American attack, which targeted the water management building in the district of al-Mansouriyah in the governorate of Hodeidah with several strikes on Tuesday resulted in three deaths and two injuries, mostly employees,” Alasbahi said.

The Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV later reported that the death toll had risen to four. Local media reported that the Hajjah region in the northwest and Saada in the north had also been attacked.

The US has not confirmed that it carried out the attacks, which came after Al Masirah TV reported multiple US attacks hitting the Saada and Sanaa regions. There were no immediate reports of casualties from the Monday night attacks.

More than 60 people have been killed in Yemen since Washington launched a military offensive on March 15 against Houthi forces. The Yemeni armed group had threatened to renew attacking Israeli-linked shipping in the Red Sea in response to Israel’s breaking of the ceasefire in Gaza.

[Aljazeera]