Colombo - Sri Lanka held remembrance ceremonies in various parts of the island nation to mark the fourth anniversary of the devastating tsunami on Boxing Day,
2004, that claimed over 40,000 lives and displaced more than half a million people..

An island-wide two-minute silence was observed Friday morning as friends and relatives of those killed in the worst natural disaster in the country's history gathered in coastal areas to mark the event.

A train engine caught in the tsunami has been repaired and was put into service for the first time in four years for a trip to the southern tourist town of Peraliya, 100 kilometres south of the capital, Colombo, in time to mark the two-minute silence. More than 1,000 people were killed when the train was swamped by the tsunami.

DubaiLahore, Dec 24 : The International Cricket Council (ICC) has said that Pakistan would provide best security to everyone involved in the forthcoming series against Sri Lanka.

"From the ICC''s perspective, what would be required is that the match officials are afforded the same level of security as any or everyone else involved in the series and the ICC would expect that to be the case in the forthcoming series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka," The News quoted an ICC spokesman, as saying.

Geneva - A

Colombo  - The Sri Lankan Navy destroyed a medium-sized vessel carrying a large quantity of military hardware for Tamil rebels in a pre-dawn raid off north-eastern Sri Lanka, Defence Ministry spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said Saturday.

The vessel was spotted and confronted off Mullaitivu, 410 kilometres north-east of the capital, he said.

Four more boats attempting to provide escort to the rebel vessel were also sunk in the same area, he said.

Health ministry of Sri Lanka has advised all Sri Lankan pilgrims to
take the polio vaccine before visiting India. Sri Lanka has eradicated
polio completely and it has not been reported in the country since
1993. But India has reported many cases of polio and most of the cases
have been reported from the states-- Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. As many
Buddhist places of worship are located in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and a
large number of Sri Lankan Buddhists make pilgrimage in that states,
spokesman said.

According to a Health Ministry spokesman,

Colombo - Fighting between government troops and Tamil separatist rebels intensified in northern Sri Lanka as troops pressed into rebel strongholds, military officials said Wednesday.

More than a dozen rebels were killed Tuesday night in Ampakamam, Mullaitivu, 380 kilometres north-east of Colombo, the military said.

Government troops were consolidating positions after heavy fighting left at least 120 rebels and 25 soldiers dead and 10 soldiers missing Tuesday in clashes outside Kilinochchi, 370 kilometers north of the capital.

The Defence Ministry said more than 250 rebels and 160 soldiers were injured in clashes on Tuesday, but the pro-rebel Tamilnet website said 130 soldiers had been killed and 24 bodies had been recovered.