REFUGEE

Colombo: The US Wednesday hailed the increasing release of people interned in camps in Sri Lanka since the end of the war against the Tamil Tigers.
"The US welcomes Sri Lanka's acceleration of the voluntary return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to their villages," the US embassy said in a statement.


"We are encouraged by the government's announcement that it intends, in the next few weeks, to facilitate the voluntary return of over 40,000 of the approximately 250,000 IDPs in the camps," it said.


"We understand that thousands have already been released. We will continue to closely monitor the situation."


The statement said the US "firmly believes that the rapid release and voluntary return of all IDPs is a critical element of national reconciliation in Sri Lanka".


Tens of thousands of Tamil civilians who survived the war that led to the decimation of the Tamil Tigers have been locked up in camps, overseen by the security forces.


Sri Lanka has come under widespread attack over the mass internment