The UN Human Rights Council decided Monday to postpone discussion on a report on war crimes in Sri Lanka to September, to give the country's new government a chance to work with UN rights experts. The report on the final stage of the civil war against Tamil separatists that ended in 2009 had been scheduled to be presented in March at the UN body's spring session. New information that could strengthen the report might emerge in the coming months, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said. "In addition, I have received clear commitments from the new government of Sri Lanka indicating it is prepared to cooperate with my office on a whole range of important human rights issues - which the previous government had absolutely refused to do," Zeid said. He stressed that this was a one-time delay. "I give my personal, absolute and unshakable commitment that the report will be published by September," said Zeid. Sri Lanka's minority Tamils had urged the United Nations on Friday to release its report as planned and to ignore a request from the new government of President Maithripala Sirisena to postpone it. While Sirisena has vowed to initiate a domestic inquiry and legal action, Tamils say they are not satisfied with a local-level investigation. Some 40,000 civilians were killed during the final stages of the conflict in the northern part of the country, the UN has said, before the rebels were crushed in May 2009. -- SPA 21:25 LOCAL TIME 18:25 GMT تغريد
