LONDON, 30 November 2020, (TON): The UK has opened an investigation into allegations of war crimes by British mercenaries involved in the Sri Lankan civil war, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said.  

First time British mercenaries will be investigated by the Metropolitan Police for allegations of war crimes, which is the UK force designated to investigate accusations of war crimes or human rights abuses.

A case was opened in March after the metropolitan “received a referral concerning war crimes alleged to have been committed by British mercenaries in Sri Lanka during the 1980s” and following a "scoping exercise", the spokesperson said.

The allegations are against a private security group from the UK, Keenie Meenie Services (KMS) that trained a new Sri Lankan police unit the Special Task Force (STF) in 1980s to fight against Tamil separatists.

The force has been accused of links to multiple atrocities, including the 1987 prawn farm massacre in which 83 people were killed.

The probe comes after the publication of a book by Declassified UK journalist Phil Miller, that put forth evidence relating to KMS’s alleged involvement in atrocities in Sri Lanka.

The UN body submitted concerns about KMS to Britain’s Foreign Office, enquiring about the actions taken by the UK government to “combat impunity”.

Sri Lanka witnessed a 26-year conflict beginning in 1983 that ended in 2009. Tamil diaspora communities across the world have been protesting the civilian casualties, demanding military leaders face justice for alleged war crimes during 23 years long Sri Lankan Civil War.