The Environment Protection Authority has alleged that some one thousand acres of land in Ampara situated in the Bakmitiya-Thimbirigolla forest reserve area have been cleared with the tacit support of Provincial Council Minister ALM Athaulla and Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem.

Colombo Mayor AJM Muzammil could be facing a knock-out blow after the Bar Association of Sri Lanka threatened him with legal action over his failure to remove the government's election posters and cut-outs following an order given by to him by the Elections Commissioner to do so.

Several sportsmen and women in Anuradhapura have been inconvenienced by the laying of concrete at the Salgado Stadium in preparation for the maiden rally of President Mahinda Rajapaksa on December 11.

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) will not get into any discussions with the government unless it responds to its proposals submitted earlier, the party's national organiser Shafeek Rajabdeen said.

Social Justice Movement leader Ven. Maduluwawe Sobitha Thera has said that what the Opposition was doing was not a personal crusade against President Mahinda Rajapaksa but a campaign conducted against his policies under the Executive Presidential system.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Neomal Perera has claimed that all images and pictures of Pope Francis strung up alongside portraits of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and other government ministers have been taken down.