Colombo, March 25, 2025 – The UK has sanctioned four individuals, including top Sri Lankan military commanders and a former LTTE leader-turned-politician, for human rights abuses during the 2009 war against the LTTE. Those sanctioned include General Shavendra Silva, Wasantha Karannagoda, Jagath Jayasuriya, and Vinyagamurthy Muralidaran, who now face UK travel bans and asset freezes.
The UK Foreign Office cited their involvement in extrajudicial killings, torture, and sexual violence during the war. This follows similar sanctions by the U.S. against Silva in 2020 and by Canada in 2023 against former presidents Mahinda and Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who led the military campaign that ended the LTTE insurgency.
