A Sri Lankan court has ordered the resumption of excavation work at a mass grave in Chemmani, on the outskirts of Jaffna, seven months after it was halted. The site first came into focus during the civil war with the LTTE in the 1990s.
The court has allowed diplomatic representatives from the EU, France, Germany, Italy and Romania to be present as observers at the excavation site.
Work in Chemmani, in the Northern Province, had been suspended in September last year due to delays in fresh funding from the Ministry of Justice. The Jaffna magistrate’s court was told on Tuesday that an allocation of LKR 2.1 million has now been made available to resume the process.
Before the halt, 240 skeletal remains had been recovered during 45 days of excavation. Investigators also uncovered 14 piles of bones and items including infant feeding bottles, a doll, toys, and children’s bags and shoes.
According to a report submitted by Jaffna’s judicial medical officer on August 14, the work was expected to continue for a further eight weeks.
During routine development work in Chemmani on February 13, 2025, skeletal remains had been discovered. The court a week later ordered a judicial examination of them. On May 15, the excavations began under judicial supervision.
Chemmani came under focus in 1998 at the height of the conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and government troops for an alleged mass grave. Some 15 skeletons were discovered then.
(With inputs from PTI)
