Government of Sri Lanka expresses solidarity to the US Government on the 20th Anniversary of 9/11Today, 11 September 2021, marks 20 years since the terrorist attacks perpetrated on the United States of America (USA) causing loss of life and limb to many innocent people from the USA as well as many other nationalities. The Government of Sri Lanka expresses its solidarity to the people and Government of the United States of America as they commemorate a very painful episode in the country’s contemporary history. Sri Lanka also wishes to pay tribute to the many victims and survivors of the dastardly attacks. As a country that has for long suffered from terrorism and succesfully overcame its challenge on Sri Lankan soil, the Government of Sri Lanka also wishes to reiterate the need for all countries to unite in eliminating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Foreign MinistryColombo11 September, 2021

COLOMBO (News 1st); Former Sri Lankan President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has written to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa seeking a pardon for Ranjan Ramanayake. Ranjan Ramanayake is currently serving a four-year sentence after he was found guilty of contempt of court. The Former President said that Ramanayake sacrifices his wealth for the well-being of the people. “As your government had pardoned several others who were imposed with harsh punishments by the court, you would also agree that it is unfortunate for Ramanayake to suffer for a less serious crime,” the letter noted. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga had appealed from the President to grant a Presidential Pardon to Ranjan Ramanayake.

Further to the resignation announcement of W. D Lakshman yesterday (10) as governor of CBSL, State Minister Ajith Nivard Cabraal is to hand over his resignation from his parliamentary seat on Monday in order to be appointed as Lakshman’s replacement mid next week. When The Morning asked Mr Cabraal few days ago on his decision of re-joining the CBSL, He chose to neither deny or accept the speculation that was in the air at that time. Cabraal is currently serving as the State Minister of Money and Capital Market and State Enterprise Reforms since August 2020, and entered Parliament through the National List.

Sharing a post on Facebook, Ishini Wickremasinghe who resigned from the post of Director-general of the Department of National Zoological Gardens said yesterday she was helpless in protecting elephants being forcibly taken away from Pinnawala. ‘Sri Devi’ is a very loving and affectionate elephant in Pinnawela. I was helpless in protecting her and the other elephants being forcibly taken away from Pinnawala, Ishini said in her Facebook post. Ishini Wickremesinghe has reportedly resigned from the post of Director-general of the Department of National Zoological Gardens in protest to returning illegally captured elephants to the alleged smugglers. Sharing a video on Facebook, the elephants being loaded onto the trucks at Pinnawala, Ishini said it was an act of taking away their freedom.“what cruelty it is to take away their freedom for one’s individual interests,” Ishini added.

The Prime Minister said in an interview that his 'levelling up' agenda would take 10 years. Mr Johnson said he would be seeking to frame the 2024 election around Brexit - warning that Britain would 'slump back' into following EU laws and regulations under Labour. The interview with Mr Johnson was carried out for a new book - 'Broken Heartlands', which is being serialised in The Times. The Times said that Mr Johnson wanted to build a legacy, with a view that reforms to the NHS and social care - through a rise in national insurance - announced this week playing a part in that. And the newspaper reported that Mr Johnson, who became Prime Minister in 2019, wanted to fix the economy and use Brexit in the next election, expected in 2024.

The Indian Ocean links West Asia with the South China Sea, and it is there that containers and freighters matter. Oil is big business, but that’s not all there is to the Indian Ocean. By the second millennium BC the Mediterranean was rapidly coming into contact with the Indian Ocean. Arab engagement with the Indian Ocean began somewhere in the eighth century AD, peaking in the 11th and 12th before ebbing somewhere in the 14th. Not so the wars of the future, if they are waged at all and if they involve India and China athwart the Indian Ocean.

Premier League clubs can play their 11 'banned' players after FIFA's five-day restriction is withdrawnBoth Alisson (left) and Fabinho (right) can play for Liverpool against Leeds this weekendIt means Jurgen Klopp can field Alisson, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino against Leeds, whose own Raphinha can now play. FIFA duly imposed five-day 'bans' on the 11 players representing their clubs. However, the Premier League clubs reached an agreement to ignore FIFA's punishment, deciding that both the league and clubs would take no action against opponents if they were to play the 'banned' players. The players wanted to play, the clubs wanted to let the players go. 'We couldn't do that but now it looks like the real punishment is for the players and of course the clubs as well.

Ollie Birkbeck, 48, is to become a father with Sophia Hesketh, 37, (both pictured) the fashion stylist daughter of former Tory treasurer Lord Hesketh, after a whirlwind romanceThe baby was conceived three months after their relationship began. Birkbeck insists his marriage was already over. Birkbeck was introduced to Sophia (pictured in 2017) by a prominent 'Turnip toff' he declines to nameOllie Birkbeck exchanged vows in 2018 with Laura Trenchard (pictured), a viscount's daughter. Birkbeck claims he remains friends with Laura, 33, who is still pictured with him on the home page of his estate's website. He adds: 'Our marriage went pearshaped very quickly.'

Hours earlier, some poor bloke from Edinburgh came up to me at the ground and asked me for a photograph. It is worth remembering India have been wary about the positioning of this Test close to the IPLYou will recall that they tried to get it moved. And so when a team pull out of a match like this, it reaches an inevitable but sad conclusion for Test ticket-holders. I don’t blame the players because I experienced similar environments last summer. England were missing three match-winners in Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Stuart Broad, and the pitch looked like it would turn.

Here, proud Bond girl Britt Ekland shares her strident argument why Bond should remain footloose and child-free....James Bond is many things, but a father? He’d be terrible at feeding, too: James Bond doesn’t even pour his own coffee, for goodness’ sake. I have not yet met a man who doesn’t want to be James Bond — and why do men want to be him? James Bond doesn’t have a human side, that’s not who he is. Ultimately, no one can ever ‘get’ James Bond, that’s what makes him so attractive.

The Analogue Pocket has experienced a few delays already due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s suffering another, the company shared on its site. Preorders for the retro handheld that can play Game Boy cartridges and other formats like Game Gear, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and more via adapters will ship “at the latest in December.” The $199 console was previously slated to launch in October, following a delay that pushed it from its original 2020 launch window. Analogue says that “due to new Covid restrictions with our assembly partners, their capacity to deliver within our agreed timeframe has been affected.” Though understandably frustrating for people who like to stay entertained during tough times, you can’t pin blame just on Analogue since chip shortages spurred by the pandemic have impacted nearly every company. Analogue shared that, after the holiday season, it expects to have the Pocket and all of its accessories restocked and ready for immediate shipping. So, hopefully this is the final delay for the handheld.

'I ran to the newsroom and watched the second plane hit. 'Then my wife came down the stairs with our social secretary, telling us there was a second plane. 'I think once the second plane had hit the towers it was very clear that it was no kind of accident. 'The first plane had gone in and I put the television on and witnessed the second plane going in. 'When I saw the second plane hit, it was almost unbelievable.'

Lijian Zhao, a senior official in the Chinese foreign ministry, mocked the United States in a tweet which has been viewed more than 70,000 times. Lijian Zhao, a senior official in the Chinese foreign ministry, mocked the United States in a tweet which has been viewed more than 70,000 timesZhao said: ''The graveyard of EMPIRES and their WAR MACHINES. Talibans have turned their planes into swings and toys'Lijian Zhao, pictured, is a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry. In the weeks before the US withdrawal, the Afghan Air Force was operating 167 aircraft, including 108 helicopters and 59 aircraft. Many were built in the 1980s and will need constant servicing and parts to make sure they are airworthy, let alone capable of combat.

Lulu Hypermarket chain in Saudi Arabia has launched a product promotional week dedicated to Sri Lankan products. The inauguration of this event was marked at the Lulu Hypermarket in the Riyadh Avenue Mall on 08 September together with officials from the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Riyadh and Lulu hyper-markets. The Lulu hypermarket chain is playing a lead role in promoting Sri Lankan products in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf markets. ‘Sri Lanka [email protected]’ is another campaign launched by Lulu Saudi Arabia that hosted a number of similar campaigns in 2020 & early 2021. Parallel to this event, the hypermarket chain will introduce more products from Sri Lanka in their product counters.

The judge did not say that Apple would be required to restore the game, and neither Apple nor Epic have indicated that it’ll return any time soon. If apps want to use another payment system, they can send users outside the app, and Apple can’t stop them from doing so. But there’s some ambiguity on whether a full-on in-app payment alternative has to be approved. Even if Epic caves and makes the changes, Apple still needs to restore Epic’s developer account and approve Fortnite for distribution. So the likely result is this: Fortnite won’t return at a minimum until Apple puts new rules into place.