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The Department of Meteorology has forecast periodic rainfall in parts of the country today (13), particularly in the Central, Uva and Eastern provinces, as well as in the Polonnaruwa and Hambantota districts.

According to the advisory, fairly heavy showers exceeding 50 mm are likely in isolated areas of the Uva Province and in the districts of Ampara, Batticaloa, Nuwara Eliya, Matale and Polonnaruwa.

The Northern Province and Anuradhapura district are also expected to experience several spells of rain during the day. Meanwhile, showers or thundershowers are predicted in many other areas after 2.00 p.m., with the possibility of rainfall above 50 mm in parts of the Sabaragamuwa Province and in the Kalutara, Galle and Matara districts.

Misty conditions are likely during the early morning hours in portions of the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces, along with the Galle and Matara districts.

The public has been urged to take necessary precautions to reduce the risk of damage from localized strong winds and lightning that may accompany thundershowers.

The JVP delegation, led by its General Secretary Tilvin Silva, which is currently in India met Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday to discuss measures to boost tourism and strengthen cultural ties.

The JVP delegation also visited ISRO’s Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and Vizhinjam Port, where they gained exposure to India’s advancements in science and technology and the blue economy.

In an official X post of ‘India in Sri Lanka’, the High Commission said, “JVP General Secretary Mr. Tilvin Silva and the delegation met Hon’ble Chief Minister of Kerala Shri Pinarayi Vijayan @pinarayivijayan. Discussions were focused on boosting tourism and cultural connect.”

It added, “The delegation also visited @isro Vikram Sarabhai Space Center and @PortOfVizhinjam, gaining exposure to India’s advancements in Science & Tech and blue economy.”

Earlier, JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva and his delegation paid a courtesy visit to Chief Minister of Gujarat Bhupendra Patel in Gandhinagar.

Welcoming the delegation to Gujarat CM expressed confidence that India-Sri Lanka relations have strengthened under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He noted that the meeting would be productive in renewing momentum for the long-standing historical and cultural ties between the two nations.

Tilvin Silva emphasised that Gujarat, a policy-driven state, offers a range of sector-specific policies that Sri Lanka could benefit from. He also advocated mutual coordination between the State Government and Sri Lanka in areas of shared interest.

According to an official release, the meeting discussed strategies to encourage more people from Gujarat to visit Sri Lanka for tourism. Tilvin Silva had expressed appreciation for India’s consistent support to Sri Lanka during times of need, including assistance in infrastructure development. He had also expressed keen enthusiasm for an industrial partnership between Gujarat and Sri Lanka.

(Source:Adaderana.lk)

Russia pounded Ukraine with drones and ballistic missiles overnight on Thursday, targeting energy systems and injuring at least seven people in the capital Kyiv, and the cities of Dnipro and Odesa, officials said.

“Hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles targeted energy systems, depriving people of power, heating, and water,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in a post on X.

Two people were hurt in a “massive” attack on Kyiv, which also hit various buildings, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

Klitschko said on Telegram there had been hits on both residential and non-residential buildings on both sides of the Dnipro River bisecting the city.

Fragments had fallen near two residential buildings in one district, but no fire had broken out.

Reuters witnesses heard explosions resound in the city.

Four people, including a baby boy and a four-year-old girl, were hurt in a missile and drone attack on the southeastern city of Dnipro and surrounding district, regional governor Oleksandr Ganzha said on Telegram.

One person was hurt in a drone attack on the southern city of Odesa on the Black Sea, which also damaged an infrastructure facility and an apartment building where a fire broke out at an upper floor, head of the city’s military administration, Serhiy Lysak said.

Lysak also said that a fire engulfed pavilions at one of the city’s markets and damaged a supermarket building.

Regional Governor Oleh Kiper said that energy infrastructure was damaged in Odesa district.

‘BLOW TO PEACE EFFORTS’

“Each such strike is a blow to peace efforts aimed at ending the war. Russia must be forced to take diplomacy seriously and de-escalate,” Sybiha said.

Ukrainian officials have met Russian officials under U.S. mediation in Abu Dhabi in the latest U.S. push to end the war.

But the talks so far have failed to resolve differences over Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, sources say, and Russia has pressed on with attacks often focused on Ukrainian energy facilities in the depths of a harsh winter.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday the U.S. needed to put more pressure on Russia if it wanted the war to end by summer.

Source: adaderana.lk

Indonesia has officially banned elephant rides, bringing an end to the decades-long tourist activity that’s become synonymous with the tropical destination.

The historic move comes just three months after an explosive investigation by PETA Asia into Bali’s top elephant parks uncovered deeply unsettling claims of animal abuse. The claims were vigorously denied by the park, who said they were “ridiculous and untrue.”

At the time, news.com.au published PETA’s findings on Mason Elephant Park in Ubud and Baka’s Adventure Elephant Safari in Klungkung Regency, that alleged the popular parks were engaging in archaic punishment and treatment of the animals.

“These attractions market themselves to tourists as ‘rescues’, yet the footage tells a different story: elephants swaying from stress, left wounded from repeated strikes and chained up for most of the day,” PETA claimed in November last year.

The facilities were accused of using bullhooks, chaining elephants up, breaking their spirits for the purpose of entertainment and leaving them in isolation.

Online, World Animal Protection Org also noted that while Mason Elephant Park claimed to be Bali’s only dedicated rescue facility, they hadn’t rescued an elephant since 2004.

In a thirty-minute clip sent to news.com.au on December 31, owner of Mason Elephant Nigel Mason branded the allegations as “ridiculous and untrue.”

“It’s obvious that you have never been to this park, and it’s quite obvious that your quotations from using PETA as an example of a story, they’ve never been here either. I’ve never met anyone from your company. I’ve never met anyone from PETA,” he said.

Mr Mason also claimed that the elephant rides offered by the park were actually a form of “exercise” for the animals, that were “not cruel in any way.”

Mr Mason further claimed that a “bullhook was certainly not something used in his park.”

Instead, he said the object was a gancho, a small tool consisting of a long stick with a curved point.

He claimed elephants are tethered at night and during feeding for safety and nutrition, adding that chains are less harmful than ropes.

“A rope does far more damage than a chain,” he said.

On footage used by activists, Mr Mason claimed much of it was not even from Bali and accused PETA of relying on “misinformation.”

Despite this, Mr Mason’s park announced it would no longer be offering the rides just two weeks later.

The facility said it would cease elephant rides after Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry imposed a nationwide ban on the act due to cruelty concerns.

Elephant riding has been criticised for many years by animal welfare experts, who claim the activity causes severe physical strain, psychological stress, and long-term harm for animals involved.

In a statement posted to social media, Mason Elephant Park and Lodge said from January 25 they would be “beginning a new chapter.”

“For 30 years, we have rescued and provided lifelong care to elephants displaced by deforestation and poaching in Sumatra,” they wrote.

“Guided by elephant health and welfare above all else, we are evolving towards a more natural experience without elephant rides.

“As Indonesia’s only internationally certified elephant park, our commitment remains unchanged: to protect the world’s only critically endangered elephant species while building a sustainable future together with the Balinese community.”

Other facilities such as Bali Zoo took to their social media, saying the ban was a “step forward for elephant welfare.”

Bali Zoo has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

“Bali Zoo has discontinued elephant riding. This decision supports our ongoing commitment to animal welfare, giving our elephants more time for natural behaviours, social interaction, and enrichment,” they wrote.

The move has drawn attention from Aussies and locals alike, who say the ban is “long overdue.”

“This is great news in principle and definitely a step in the right direction,” wrote one.

“At last – it’s a start,” said another.

“About time! They are not on this planet to serve lazy humans or provide entertainment,” wrote a third.

Jason Baker, President of PETA Asia also praised the decision by Indonesian officials.

“Elephants are too often on the losing end of the tourism industry. PETA investigations have found elephants routinely chained and beaten with sharp bullhooks to force them to obey for tourist rides, while babies are frequently subjected to brutal training methods designed to break their spirits.

“The move by the Indonesian government — and specifically the Ministry of Forestry — puts Indonesia at the forefront of elephant welfare. While more work remains, this makes Indonesia the first country in Asia to ban elephant rides nationwide. History will look back on this as a precedent-setting decision.

“We now urge Nepal, Thailand, India, and other countries to follow Indonesia’s lead, and we call on travel agencies worldwide to stop selling packages that include elephant rides anywhere in the world.”

(Source:Adaderana.lk)

US House lawmakers voted on Wednesday (Feb 12) to reject Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods, sweeping aside the president’s last-gasp threat of election consequences for Republicans to deliver a rare rebuke on his signature economic policy.

The measure brought by Democrats was approved 219-211, with six Republicans joining the effort.

It remains largely a symbolic move.

The House can consider measures to end the national emergencies Trump declared last year to impose sweeping tariffs on imports from various countries.

But any action aimed at undoing Trump’s tariffs on Canada and other trading partners will still need US Senate passage and the president’s signature.

Even if it clears the Senate, it would face a certain veto by Trump, and Congress would unlikely muster the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.

Trump sought to inject himself into the action at the last minute, issuing a direct political threat to lawmakers from his own Republican Party as the vote was taking place on the House floor.

“Any Republican, in the House or the Senate, that votes against TARIFFS will seriously suffer the consequences come Election time,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

“TARIFFS have given us Economic and National Security, and no Republican should be responsible for destroying this privilege,” he added.

Wednesday’s rebuke comes after the expiration of a measure barring any vote on the issue of tariffs in the chamber - a move that has stifled opposition to Trump’s trade policy. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Trump ally in Congress, sought to renew this prohibition on Tuesday but was unsuccessful, as three House Republicans voted alongside Democrats to block the move.

Earlier on Wednesday, House Republican Don Bacon posted on social media that lawmakers “cannot & should not outsource our responsibilities”.

“As an old-fashioned Conservative I know tariffs are a tax on American consumers,” he added, noting that debates and votes on the issue should occur in the House.

Canada - like other US trading partners - has been hit by various waves of Trump’s tariffs since he returned to office early last year, tapping emergency economic powers to justify the duties.

Broad exemptions for Canadian goods however have softened the blow.

Trump may have imposed a 35 per cent tariff on many Canadian products last year, but he provided lower rates for energy imports and created sweeping exclusions for goods entering under the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA).

Trump’s separate sector-specific tariffs - especially on autos, steel and aluminium - have hit Canada hard. 

But overall, more than 85 per cent of all bilateral trade has remained tariff-free under USMCA terms.

Trump’s country-specific tariffs, justified by emergency economic powers, have faced legal challenges too and the Supreme Court is due to rule on their legality in the near future.

While Trump has repeatedly touted tariffs as a positive development for the country, a Pew Research Center survey released this month indicated that 60 per cent of Americans disapprove of Trump’s higher tariffs.

BILL PASSED TO REQUIRE US CITIZENSHIP PROOF FOR VOTERS

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives also voted on Wednesday to require proof of US citizenship in the November midterm elections, which Democrats said would impose unnecessary burdens on American voters and concentrate electoral power in the hands of President Donald Trump.  

Lawmakers voted 218-213 to approve the SAVE America Act, with only one Democrat joining Republicans to back the measure. The action sends the legislation on to the Republican-led Senate, where it is expected to receive a vote but unlikely to garner the 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority needed for passage.

The bill is the latest version of election legislation that first emerged during the 2024 presidential campaign, driven by Trump’s false claims that large numbers of people in the country illegally have been voting in federal elections. A similar measure passed the House twice - last April and in 2024 - only to die in the Senate.

The House vote came barely a week after Trump called for Republicans to “take over” elections in more than a dozen locations. The bill would require proof of citizenship when registering to vote in the midterms and would impose criminal penalties on election officials who register anyone without the required documentation.

Republicans also added a photo ID requirement for people casting ballots at the polls or via mail-in ballots in subsequent federal elections. They cited polls including a Pew Research Center survey showing that 83 per cent of voters, including 71 per cent of Democrats, back photo ID for voters.

REPUBLICANS WORRY OVER SPECIAL ELECTION LOSSES

House Speaker Mike Johnson described the bill as “common sense legislation to just ensure that American citizens decide American elections”.

But Democratic Party leaders say the legislation attempts to suppress the vote and undermine their electoral chances at a time when they are favoured by independent analysts to take control of the House. Republicans have been jarred by a string of Democratic special election wins, including one for the Texas state Senate viewed as a wake-up call.

“The SAVE America Act is part of a comprehensive Republican strategy to cement power this year. Speaker Johnson wants to make it harder for Americans to vote, easier for Washington Republicans to control how elections are run,” said Representative Joe Morelle, the top Democrat on the House committee that oversees elections.

It is already illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections. Independent groups on the left and the right, as well as state election officials, have found such voting to be extremely rare.

The left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law has warned that the SAVE America Act could deny the vote to millions of US citizens who lack ready access to passports, birth certificates and other documents that prove their citizenship.

Democracy advocates say the legislation is also part of a larger struggle between the Trump administration and state governments that has included the withholding of federal funds, the deployment of National Guard troops and the FBI search of a county election office in Georgia.

“We have checks and balances in place that include state and local officials acting as a check against federal overreach,” said Mai Ratakonda, program director of election protection at States United Democracy Center, a nonpartisan group that works to safeguard free and fair elections. “That’s what the federal government is trying to undermine.”

Republicans are also readying a second, broader election bill, called the Make Elections Great Again Act, which would mandate the use of paper ballots, restrict mail-in ballots and prohibit ranked-choice voting in federal general elections. It was examined at a hearing before the House Administration Committee on Tuesday.

(Source: Adaderana.lk)

A key parliamentary oversight committee has given its unanimous approval to a Bill aimed at scrapping pension entitlements for Members of Parliament.

Chair of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Governance, Justice and Civil Protection, MP Najith Indika, confirmed that the proposal received full backing during a recent committee meeting.

Addressing the decision, MP Indika said the move aligns with a major commitment outlined in the current government’s policy statement. He noted that one of the pledges made ahead of the election was to eliminate the pension granted to MPs after serving only a limited period in Parliament.

The proposed legislation will repeal the Parliamentary Pensions Act No. 1 of 1977. If passed when it is presented in Parliament next week, MPs will no longer qualify for a pension following their parliamentary service.

MP Indika further stated that the reform is intended to reinforce the principle of public service in politics and contribute to a shift in political culture. He added that the measure reflects the government’s commitment to delivering on its promises and signals the direction it intends to take in the future.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday has called for a two percent tax increase for New Yorkers making over a million dollars a year, along with a hike in the state’s corporate tax rate, proposals he originally championed during his campaign.

During testimony before the New York State Senate’s 2026 budget hearing, Mamdani, a Democrat, said the city’s budget gap has decreased from $12 billion to $7 billion by “assuming an aggressive posture on savings without compromising city services, incorporating updated revenue and bonus estimates, and using in-year reserves.”

Despite a narrowing of the budget shortfall, Mamdani said, New York is “placed on a ledge.”

“I believe the wealthiest individuals and most profitable corporations should contribute a little more so that everyone can live lives of dignity,” said Mamdani, who will release the city’s preliminary budget on Tuesday.

“That’s why—along with raising the corporate tax—I’m asking for a 2% personal income tax increase on the most affluent New Yorkers.”

Mamdani said a two percent tax increase would resolve nearly half of the city’s budget deficit. He campaigned to increase the New York’s corporate rate from 7.25% to 11.5%.

Democratic New York Governor Kathy Hochul would have to approve any tax increases proposed by Mamdani.

A spokesperson for Hochul did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The governor, who presented her budget last month, has reiterated her opposition to any tax hikes in the state.

“We’re able to make transformative investments in our future. Without raising taxes.

Without saddling the next generation with mounds of debt,” Hochul said last month.

Source:Adaderana.lk

The 27th Session of the EU–Sri Lanka Joint Commission is taking place in Colombo today (12), bringing together high-level representatives from Sri Lanka and the European Union.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the meeting will focus on assessing ongoing cooperation and identifying ways to further enhance collaboration in key sectors such as governance, human rights, trade, development assistance, and other bilateral and regional matters.

The session will be jointly led by Aruni Ranaraja, Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, and Paola Pampaloni, Acting Managing Director for Asia and the Pacific at the European External Action Service (EEAS).

In addition to the formal proceedings, members of the visiting EU delegation are scheduled to hold discussions with senior Sri Lankan leaders to outline practical steps and future initiatives aimed at deepening the longstanding partnership between the two sides, the Ministry stated.

Passport and visa processing has been temporarily put on hold following a technical fault in the system operated by the Department of Immigration and Emigration.

In a statement, the Department said the disruption has affected the issuance of travel documents and visas, and services will recommence as soon as the system is fully restored. Officials are currently working to resolve the issue at the earliest.

Members of the public seeking further clarification have been advised to contact the Department via 011 210 1540 or 011 210 1545, or to visit its official website for updates.

Rainfall is expected to affect multiple parts of the country today (12), with the Department of Meteorology forecasting periodic showers in the Central, Uva, Eastern and North-central provinces, as well as in the Hambantota district.

According to the Met. Department, fairly heavy rain exceeding 50 mm is likely in isolated areas of Nuwara-Eliya, Matale, Badulla and Polonnaruwa districts. The Northern Province is also expected to experience several spells of showers throughout the day.

Elsewhere across the island, showers or thundershowers are anticipated in the afternoon, particularly after 2.00 p.m., with some locations likely to receive rainfall above 50 mm.

In addition, misty conditions are forecast during the early morning hours in parts of the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and North-western provinces, along with the Galle and Matara districts.

The Department has advised the public to remain cautious and take necessary precautions to reduce potential damage from temporary strong winds and lightning that may accompany thundershowers.