Sri Lanka has ended a four-month state of emergency declared after Easter suicide bombings by extremists that killed 258 people, officials said Friday.
President Maithripala Sirisena has been extending the emergency on the 22nd of each month since the April 21 attacks on three hotels and three churches.
However, his office confirmed that Mr Sirisena had not extended it for another term and thereby allowed the emergency to end on Thursday.
"The president did not issue a fresh proclamation extending the emergency by a further period," an official source said.
The official government printer also confirmed that there was no notification reimposing the state of emergency, which gives sweeping powers to police and security forces to arrest and detain suspects for long periods.
The government used the emergency as it tightened security across the country and hunted members of a local extremist group which was held responsible for the attacks and which claimed allegiance to ISIS.
Police have said that all those directly responsible for the suicide bombings have either been killed or arrested.
This week Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said he had asked the president to relax the emergency to signal to foreign holidaymakers that the situation in the country was back to normal.
Sri Lanka's parliament is currently investigating security lapses that led to the Easter attacks despite intelligence warnings.
Mr Sirisena himself has been accused of failing to act on precise Indian intelligence that extremists were about to attack Christian churches and other targets in Sri Lanka.
A parliamentary public inquiry has been told that Mr Sirisena – who is also the minister of defence and law and order – failed to follow proper national security protocols.
The mainly Buddhist nation of 21 million people was about to mark a decade since ending a 37-year-long Tamil separatist war when the extremists struck.
SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
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Brief scores
Day 1
Toss England, chose to bat
England, 1st innings 357-5 (87 overs): Root 184 not out, Moeen 61 not out, Stokes 56; Philander 3-46
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others
SPECS
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 750hp at 7,500rpm
Torque: 800Nm at 5,500rpm
Transmission: 7 Speed dual-clutch auto
Top speed: 332kph
Fuel consumption: 12.2L/100km
On sale: Year end
Price: From Dh1,430,000 (coupe); From Dh1,566,000 (Spider)
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
Bahrain GP
Friday qualifying: 7pm (8pm UAE)
Saturday race: 7pm (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
WITHIN SAND
Director: Moe Alatawi
Starring: Ra’ed Alshammari, Adwa Fahd, Muhand Alsaleh
Rating: 3/5
The Details
Kabir Singh
Produced by: Cinestaan Studios, T-Series
Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa
Rating: 2.5/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.6-litre turbo
Transmission: six-speed automatic
Power: 165hp
Torque: 240Nm
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Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
The Witcher - season three
Director: Various
Stars: Henry Cavill, Freya Allan, Anya Chalotra
Rating: 3/5
A Little to the Left
Developer: Max Inferno
Consoles: PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch
Rating: 4/5
Common symptoms of MS
- Fatigue
- numbness and tingling
- Loss of balance and dizziness
- Stiffness or spasms
- Tremor
- Pain
- Bladder problems
- Bowel trouble
- Vision problems
- Problems with memory and thinking
MATCH INFO
FA Cup final
Chelsea 1
Hazard (22' pen)
Manchester United 0
Man of the match: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
Champion v Champion (PFL v Bellator)
Heavyweight: Renan Ferreira v Ryan Bader
Middleweight: Impa Kasanganay v Johnny Eblen
Featherweight: Jesus Pinedo v Patricio Pitbull
Catchweight: Ray Cooper III v Jason Jackson
Showcase Bouts
Heavyweight: Bruno Cappelozza (former PFL World champ) v Vadim Nemkov (former Bellator champ)
Light Heavyweight: Thiago Santos (PFL title contender) v Yoel Romero (Bellator title contender)
Lightweight: Clay Collard (PFL title contender) v AJ McKee (former Bellator champ)
Featherweight: Gabriel Braga (PFL title contender) v Aaron Pico (Bellator title contender)
Lightweight: Biaggio Ali Walsh (pro debut) v Emmanuel Palacios (pro debut)
Women’s Lightweight: Claressa Shields v Kelsey DeSantis
Featherweight: Abdullah Al Qahtani v Edukondal Rao
Amateur Flyweight: Malik Basahel v Vinicius Pereira
THE SPECS
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Power: 416hp at 7,000rpm
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Transmission: 6-speed manual
Fuel consumption: 10.2 l/100km
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On sale: now
More from Armen Sarkissian
Bridgerton season three - part one
Directors: Various
Starring: Nicola Coughlan, Luke Newton, Jonathan Bailey
Rating: 3/5
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Brief scores:
Scotland 371-5, 50 overs (C MacLeod 140 no, K Coetzer 58, G Munsey 55)
England 365 all out, 48.5 overs (J Bairstow 105, A Hales 52; M Watt 3-55)
Result: Scotland won by six runs
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 3 (Silva 8' &15, Foden 33')
Birmginahm City 0
Man of the match Bernado Silva (Manchester City)