Wikileaks Us memo accuses srilanka president of war crimes

Wednesday 01 December 2010

Channel 4 News uncovers a WikiLeaks cable which appears to show the United States believes responsibility for alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka rests with its leaders, including President Rajapakse.

The cable, released today by whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks, and unearthed by Channel 4 News, was sent from the US Embassy in Colombo on 15 January this year and is headed: "Sri Lanka war crimes accountability: the Tamil perspective".
In it, Ambassador Patricia Butenis tackles what the cable describes as "the most difficult issue", of who in Sri Lanka is accountable for war crimes allegedly committed over the country's 26-year civil war, particularly towards the last few months of the conflict.
The WikiLeaks website has been under sustained cyber attack for most of today, but in a short break Channel 4 News was able to obtain the Sri Lanka cable.

The cable, released today by whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks, and unearthed by Channel 4 News, was sent from the US Embassy in Colombo on 15 January this year and is headed: "Sri Lanka war crimes accountability: the Tamil perspective".

In it, Ambassador Patricia Butenis tackles what the cable describes as "the most difficult issue", of who in Sri Lanka is accountable for war crimes allegedly committed over the country's 26-year civil war, particularly towards the last few months of the conflict.

The WikiLeaks website has been under sustained cyber attack for most of today, but in a short break Channel 4 News was able to obtain the Sri Lanka cable.