Hon. M.S. Uthumalebbe

¶ 01 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

¶ 02 Hon. Presiding Member, I am pleased to participate in this Adjournment Debate on the situation caused by the ongoing war. The US and Israel have been conducting attacks on Iran for 20 days, and Iran has been carrying out military responses. This has destabilized the Middle East.

¶ 03 As the Minister of Buddhasasana noted, our country, already recovering from economic crisis and then hit by cyclone and floods, is now affected again by a distant war—especially economically. About 1.2 million Sri Lankans abroad, many in the Middle East, now face uncertainty. We must unite to rebuild our economy together.

¶ 04 Who started this war? Let us be honest: the US and Israel violated a sovereign nation and killed its spiritual leaders during talks—that is how the world turned into a battlefield. During Ramadan, they brutally assassinated a democratically elected spiritual leader without regard. We must condemn this.

¶ 05 When an Iranian Navy vessel was attacked near our waters, despite many competing needs, the President acted: Sri Lanka brought injured Iranian naval officers here for treatment and sent the janazas of those who died back to Iran; we also rescued those on the second vessel. On behalf of the people, I thank the President and our Navy.

¶ 06 We, including Opposition Leader Hon. Sajith Premadasa and our party, urged the Government to condemn the US–Israel incursion and assassination. Yet a Government MP said we are “neutral due to economic reasons.”

¶ 07 Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reportedly refused to flee to a bunker, saying if he did so, 93 million Iranians would also have to hide; he chose to face danger and fell a martyr. The US and Israel have also assassinated Iran’s National Security Advisor Ali Larijani and Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib. The US has announced a USD 10 million bounty (about Rs. 30 billion) for information on the new Supreme Leader Mujtaba Khamenei. But Iran’s ancient civilization will not fall as they imagine; America and Israel will pay a price for such actions. They are pushing toward a third world war; the whole world is affected, and we must condemn it.

¶ 08 They dream of installing a US–Israel friendly leader—Reza Pahlavi, son of the ousted Shah—but this is a fantasy rejected by Iranians.

¶ 09 Given the intensifying conflict, the Government must take appropriate measures, pursue clear diplomatic communications to the international community, and advocate for a ceasefire and peace in the Middle East. We should call upon world leaders to act. We must also recognize those responsible for war crimes—such as Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu.