Sri Lanka says it plans to create special court to examine alleged civil war atrocities
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An official says Sri Lanka will begin talks next month on creating a special court to examine alleged atrocities during the country's civil war, in which tens of thousands of people died.
Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera made the announcement Thursday, a day after the United Nations human rights chief recommended a special hybrid court including foreign judges and investigators to examine the allegations, which he described as horrific. He said Sri Lanka's own courts are not yet ready to carry out a fair judicial process.
Samaraweera said the new court would be domestic but the government is willing to accept international assistance.
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Sri Lanka's civil war ended in 2009 with the government's defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels who had sought to create a separate state for ethnic minority Tamils.