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Norway bids to save Sri Lanka from war, toll hits 326
Aug 5, 2006 (AFP) – Peacebroker Norway headed for crucial talks with Tamil Tiger rebels Saturday in a bid to stop bloody fighting that has claimed 326 lives by official count and displaced thousands. Oslo’s special envoy, Jon Hanssen-Bauer, travelled to the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi for what diplomats said were desperate talks to save […]
Tighter security for Sri Lanka refugees after massacre report
KANTALAI, Sri Lanka, Aug 5, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops tightened security Saturday in the island’s northeast for 20,000 Muslim refugee families fleeing fighting after the government said at least 100 Muslim men were killed by Tiger rebels.Half of the men, women and children refugees were housed in schools and other buildings while the […]
Sri Lanka says 152 Tiger rebels killed in clashes
Aug 5, 2006 (AFP) – At least 152 Tamil Tiger rebels were killed in northeastern Sri Lanka as security forces established full control over a Muslim coastal town, the defence ministry said Saturday. Troops using artillery and air attacks inflicted the losses on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Friday afternoon in and […]
Sri Lanka’s Jan-June trade deficit widens sharply on oil
August 4, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s trade deficit expanded 48.0 percent to 1,793 million dollars for the six months to June, compared with the same period 2005, the central bank said Friday, as the island spent more to import fuel. From January-June, the island imported 4,955 million dollars worth of goods, up 20.3 percent […]
Singer (Sri Lanka) Ltd takes up an extra Rs. 200 mn in debt
August 4, 2006 (LBO) – Singer (Sri Lanka) Ltd has opted to accept up to 800 million rupees in debt after its initial 600 million rupee debenture issue was oversubscribed. Fitch Ratings Lanka, which gave the initial four-year issue a A+(lka) rating said Friday that they were extending the same scale to the extra 200 […]
Recovery Time
August 04, 2006 (LBO) – Feeder vessels operating in Colombo said they would remove a cost recovery surcharge imposed on ships calling on the island, from August 10. Following a recent strike at the Colombo port that crippled work for eleven days, feeder vessels slapped a 40 dollar levy per Twenty foot Equivalent Unit (TEU) […]
John Keells picks up new Maldivian resort for US$12.5 mn
August 04, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s largest hotel operator, John Keells Holdings Friday said they have picked up their fifth Maldivian resort for 12.5 million dollars. Some of the best diving sites in the Maldives are found in the vicinity of Ellaidhoo such as Fish Head, Maya Thila, Halaveli Wreck and Fesdhoo Wreck. Maldivian […]
Mutual Ties
August 4, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka and India have agreed to recognise product certificates issued in both countries, cutting down red tape and transaction time when goods are traded. Sri Lanka’s Cabinet of Ministers has approved the bilateral agreement between Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) and the Bureau of Indian Standards, Cabinet spokesperson, Anura […]
Google Powered
Aug 04 (LBO) – Popular Internet search engine Google has given the Lanka Software Foundation 25,000 dollars to drive open source software projects locally. Much of the funds will go towards new research and development projects, including work with open source database MySQL, the foundation said in a statement on Friday. œTo date the Lanka […]
Lebanon bombings cut off umbilical cord for aid: UN
GENEVA, Aug 4, 2006 (AFP) – Overnight bombings in Lebanon cut off an “umbilical cord” for relief supplies and halted evacuations from the country to Syria, international and UN agencies said Friday.Israeli warplanes wrecked four bridges along the coastal highway in the Christian heartland north of Beirut, cutting off practically the last landlink with neighbouring […]