Shocking Video Footage from Sri Lanka

The Sri Lankan government is facing renewed calls for an investigation into human rights abuses after a graphic video was released showing extra-judicial killings.

Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka, which obtained the material, said this video was filmed in January – when the international media were prevented by the Sri Lankan government from covering the conflict zone.

The video shows a uniformed soldier shooting a naked man in the head. Eight dead bodies can be seen in the video as well.

Although Amnesty International is not able to verify the footage on this video, it raises important questions about violations committed during the recent conflict.

And the reaction to the video underscores the precarious situation in Sri Lanka, where tensions remain high.  In response to the video, the International Secretariat of Amnesty International repeated its call for “an international, independent and credible investigation into what took place during the final days of the conflict.”

The Sri Lankan governmnet has decried the video as “absolutely false”, suggesting that those who put forth the video of supporters of the LTTE.

What remains to be seen is if the video is used–by all parties–to further divisions or to create an important discussion about the violations during the recent conflict.

WARNING: The footage is very graphic.