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Sri Lanka's former army chief sworn in as minister

Xinhua, February 25, 2016 Adjust font size:

Sri Lanka's former army commander Sarath Fonseka was sworn in as a minister by President Maithripala Sirisena on Thursday.

Fonseka, then army commander when the government troops defeated Tamil Tiger rebels in May 2009, was appointed as the minister of regional development.

Although Fonseka contested the parliamentary elections in August last year, his Democratic Party failed to secure any seats in parliament.

The Democratic Party signed a collective agreement with the ruling United National Party earlier this month, after which Fonseka was sworn in as a member of parliament.

Fonseka, who led the military to end a 30-year civil conflict in the island country, was awarded the highest rank of Field Marshall by President Sirisena soon after his victory in a presidential election in January last year. Endit