Channel 4 News reveals images
of the men caught on camera apparently taking
part in executions in Sri Lanka, actions a top
lawyer has branded "war crimes". Can you help
identify the men involved?
Warning: There are disturbing images in the
videos on this page.
The UN has told Channel 4 News that the Sri
Lanka apparent execution video, broadcast on
Tuesday, deserves further investigation. The UN
Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or
arbitrary executions, Professor Christof Heyns,
said: "It is shocking indeed, and clearly
deserves more investigation," he said. Mark
Ellis, Executive Director of the International
Bar Association (IBA), told Channel 4 News the
video was prima facie evidence of war crimes
being committed. "This is a very disturbing
video and clearly, on the face of it, shows war
crimes have been committed and perhaps crimes
against humanity, depending on who the group
targeted was. "There is no question that this
video is prima facie evidence that these crimes
were committed. And therefore there's a
responsibility on the part of the international
community to push for an investigation and
prosecution." The video appears to show
government troops executing civilians in the
last few weeks of the 26-year Sri Lanka war,
which ended last year when Sri Lanka declared
victory over the Tamil Tigers. The men are
pictured here for the first time in both still
images and video. One soldier is seen to shoot
one of the bound and blindfolded prisoners in
the leg as he lies amongst the bodies of other
Tamil prisoners on the ground. The soldier is
then seen to walk away and turns directly to the
camera. His image is briefly out of camera shot
behind another soldier before he appears again
close to camera - his face and moustache clearly
visible.
The deeply distressing video, excerpts of which
were first shown by Channel 4 News this week,
then shows what appears to be a Sri Lankan
soldier dressed in camoflage shooting another
prisoner directly in the head. This would appear
to be an execution. The IBA's Mark Ellis said:
"International law is very clear. This does not
stop with the soldier. It must move up through
command - so cases can be made at the
individuals whose faces are shown but also
possibly at their commanders if they are
military forces. "It is possible for a case to
be brought to the President, if he knew or
should have known what was happening in this
conflict." The video is a longer version of one
which already sparked a United Nations (UN)
investigation 16 months ago when it first came
to light. Channel 4 News has sent the new video
to the UN panel investigating allegations of war
crimes in Sri Lanka. Now we are hoping to
uncover the identities of the men in the videos.
After looking at the photos and video on this
page, if you have any information please get in
touch on news@channel4.com
Courtesy: Channel 4
The views expressed
in the article are the author's and not of
Tamilpakkam.com
