The remains of two Sri Lankan peacekeeping personnel who were killed in Mali were received at the Bandaranaike International Airport at around 3:30 pm today (Jan 02).
Army Commander Mahesh Senanayake, UN Resident Coordinator Hanaa Singer, and several other key officials received the remains of the Major H.W.D. Jayawickrama and Sergeant S.S. Wijekumara with a military parade.
The coffins were draped in UN flags and handed over to the Army Commander and the Director General of the Personnel Administration at the airport, the Army said in a press release. The UN flags were then handed over to visiting MINUSMA Force Commander, Lieutenant General Dennis Gyllisporre after draping the coffins with the Sri Lankan flags.
The military funeral of Major Jayawickrama will take place on February 7 in Polonnaruwa while tentative arrangements have been made to conduct the final rites of Sergeant Wijekumara on February 6.
A post-mortem examination on the bodies would be carried out at the Negombo Hospital.
The Cyclonic Storm “Ditwah” moved further north from Trincomalee today evening leaving a trail of destruction including more than 90 deaths, over 100 missing and tens of thousands displaced, officials said.
A third rescue attempt to save 28 people trapped on the rooftop of a farm building in Vithikuliya, Nikaweratiya, has failed due to the dangerous water surge from the Deduru Oya.
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