Colombo, March 27 -- Former President and leader of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Mahinda Rajapaksa has strongly criticized the United Kingdom for imposing sanctions on Sri Lanka's former military leaders, questioning how the UK could penalize those who ended a war against terrorism.

Speaking exclusively to Daily Mirror, Rajapaksa accused the UK of maintaining a double standard by sanctioning Sri Lankan military figures while the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) remains a banned terrorist organization in the UK.

"In 2009, Sri Lanka's armed forces successfully ended a brutal 30-year war against the LTTE after thousands of innocent civilians were killed in terrorist attacks, including bombings in Colombo," Rajapaksa said. ...