Sri Lanka, June 14 -- Former Army Commander and Joint Operations Commander General Hamilton Wanasinghe (91) passed away yesterday. Hailed as the one of the greatest military men, the country has ever produced, Gen. Wanasinghe became the 11th Army Commander of Sri Lanka and later he was appointed Secretary of Defence. Gen. Wanasinghe pioneered in transforming the Sri Lankan Army which was until then a ceremonial force. Two of his nephews and his son-in-law were killed an action.

Wanasinghe, who joined the Sri Lanka Army as a cadet officer in 1953 and trained at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst, served in various positions in the Sri Lanka Army and was appointed Army Commander in 1988. He served as the Commander of the Joint Operati...