Ranil slams Al-Jazeera panel, says unhappy with “Edited” video

Friday, 7 March 2025 06:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday expressed dissatisfaction with the Al Jazeera interview that was broadcast, raising concerns over the integrity of the panellists involved.

Speaking to the media shortly after the interview aired yesterday, Wickremesinghe claimed that two of the three panellists who joined host Mehdi Hasan had pro-LTTE affiliations.

“I was informed that Human Rights Lawyer and Former Commissioner of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Ambika Sathkunanathan, would be part of the discussion. I was comfortable with that, as I have known her despite our ideological differences. However, I later found out that she was replaced by two other panellists who, I was told, have links to pro-LTTE groups,” Wickremesinghe stated.

He also criticised the format of the interview, alleging that key parts of his responses were omitted. “When I speak to local media, it is broadcast live, so everything — both good and bad — comes out. Al Jazeera, however, interviewed me for two hours but released only a one-hour segment, editing out most of it,” he said.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.