The Sri Lanka Army is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back to 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; the army was renamed as the 'Sri Lanka Army' when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972. In 2024, the Army had approximately 150,000 personnel.
The Sri Lanka Army killed Velupillai Prabhakaran, the leader and founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, to bring an end to the 26-year Sri Lankan civil war.
On May 18, in the year 2009, The Sri Lanka Army killed Velupillai Prabhakaran, the leader and founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, to bring an end to the 26-year Sri Lankan civil war. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of May 18, one of 419 recorded events on this date across all of history.
Key Facts
- This event took place on May 18, 2009 (AD era).
- It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
- Referenced in 4 Wikipedia articles.
- Wikipedia source last updated on 13 May 2026.
On This Date in History 419
This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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