The UK will deploy RAF Typhoon jets to defend Saudi Arabia in response to escalating Houthi missile and drone attacks, the defence secretary has said.

The government cannot act contrary to the Supreme Court ruling against Venerable Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said today (20), stressing that the law must be upheld without exception.

Traffic movement along the Colombo-bound lane from Model Farm Junction towards D.S. Junction in Borella has been restricted due to emergency road repair work, police said.

Several investigations are underway into the death of tusker Kawanthissa, with two suspects arrested and remanded until October 28, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa confirmed today (20).

The Department of Meteorology has issued an amber advisory for heavy rainfall in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, North-Western and Northern provinces and in the Anuradhapura District.

The Colombo Magistrate’s Court has ordered that a complaint filed against former Minister Prasanna Ranatunga over an alleged corruption offence be taken up again on January 26, 2027.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake today (20) paid his last respects to the remains of Most Venerable Kappetiyagoda Siri Wimala Thera, the Anunayake of the Sri Lanka Ramanna Maha Nikaya and the Chief Incumbent of the Rajopawanaramaya Temple in Gatambe, Kandy.

Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa has responded to public concerns over the new bill on protecting the state from terrorism, which has been presented to parliament by the government.

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a proposal to instruct the Legal Draftsman to prepare a bill to amend the Ayurveda Act No. 31 of 1961, with the aim of modernising the regulation and development of Sri Lanka’s indigenous medicine sector.

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved amendments to the Suraksha Student Insurance Scheme, introducing additional benefits for medical treatments, diagnostic tests and accident-related deaths, effective from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2027.

The Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court has ordered the release on bail of Sanjaya Samarasinghe, the secretary to Member of Parliament Namal Rajapaksa, who was arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC).

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the publication of a new bill to establish a National Agency for Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and provide the legal framework to promote and facilitate PPP projects in Sri Lanka.

Police have arrested a 32-year-old individual who was allegedly planning to assassinate a businessman residing in Anguruwathota, along with a T-56 assault rifle, a magazine and 16 rounds of ammunition.

Losses amounting to Rs. 18,368.89 million have been incurred due to the use of substandard coal and emergency coal purchases, according to Samagi Jana Balawegaya Parliamentarian S. M. Marikkar.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has proposed the government of establishing a special task force to protect Sri Lanka’s tuskers following the death of the tusker ‘Kavanthissa’.