![Eranga Jayawardena Thangarasa Kirubakaran, a former rebel fighter who was disabled in the civil war, gets help from his wife as he sits in a wheelchair outside his home in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/cb23c49017b44732b316732c3cd88009/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Thangarasa Kirubakaran, a former rebel fighter who was disabled in the civil war, gets help from his wife as he sits in a wheelchair outside his home in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Singaram Soosaimuthu, a 45-year-old former rebel fighter, chats with friends as he returns from the sea after fishing overnight, in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. The former Tamil fighter lost both legs in 2009 as the nation’s generation-long civil war drew to a close and the Tamils retreated in defeat. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/aacdf140afcc4668875dc2ad48882a51/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Singaram Soosaimuthu, a 45-year-old former rebel fighter, chats with friends as he returns from the sea after fishing overnight, in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. The former Tamil fighter lost both legs in 2009 as the nation’s generation-long civil war drew to a close and the Tamils retreated in defeat. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Ethnic Tamil students attend a private tuition class ahead of the Sri Lankan Advance Level examination in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/7233579e922741f695ef9deeb93f943e/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Ethnic Tamil students attend a private tuition class ahead of the Sri Lankan Advance Level examination in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena An ethnic Tamil girl plays outside her newly constructed house in Kankesanthurai, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/bad6050bcafe4d889f6e20512e0ec7b6/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
An ethnic Tamil girl plays outside her newly constructed house in Kankesanthurai, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Nat Castaneda Members of the Tamil diaspora prepare a portrait of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also called Tamil Tigers, for a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. Tamils from across Europe gathered to remember Prabhakaran 15 years after the end of Sri Lanka's civil war, which pitted Sri Lankan government forces against Tamil Tiger separatists. (AP Photo/Nat Castañeda)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/81367f5db33e40d29aaae26d96eac25e/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Members of the Tamil diaspora prepare a portrait of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also called Tamil Tigers, for a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. Tamils from across Europe gathered to remember Prabhakaran 15 years after the end of Sri Lanka's civil war, which pitted Sri Lankan government forces against Tamil Tiger separatists. (AP Photo/Nat Castañeda)
![Eranga Jayawardena Thyagesan, a former rebel fighter who was disabled in the civil war, sits in a wheelchair at his home in Puthukkudiyiruppu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2023. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/d27b7e290bf54aca814a618eb1e37026/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Thyagesan, a former rebel fighter who was disabled in the civil war, sits in a wheelchair at his home in Puthukkudiyiruppu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2023. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Young ethnic Tamils drink a local alcoholic brew as they spend time together in the village of Thunukkai in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/6dff74057905489f8143594258706c44/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Young ethnic Tamils drink a local alcoholic brew as they spend time together in the village of Thunukkai in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Achala Upendra FILE - Police officers try to stop supporters of Sri Lanka's Tamil National Alliance during a protest in Addalaichenai, Sri Lanka, Feb. 3, 2021. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Achala Upendra, File)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/55696a34c0fb411d8231de92150456ac/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
FILE - Police officers try to stop supporters of Sri Lanka's Tamil National Alliance during a protest in Addalaichenai, Sri Lanka, Feb. 3, 2021. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Achala Upendra, File)
![Nat Castaneda Members of the Tamil diaspora from across Europe gather to remember Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also called the Tamil Tigers, at a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Nat Castaneda)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/9ec864d1aeb345a2995cc1e5ecabdda8/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Members of the Tamil diaspora from across Europe gather to remember Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also called the Tamil Tigers, at a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Nat Castaneda)
![Eranga Jayawardena Singaram Soosaimuthu, a 45-year-old former rebel fighter, moves on the beach using his arms as he returns from the sea after fishing overnight, in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. The former Tamil fighter lost both legs in 2009 as the nation’s generation-long civil war drew to a close and the Tamils retreated in defeat. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/0c500daa5e41440aa12038dfdd737aed/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Singaram Soosaimuthu, a 45-year-old former rebel fighter, moves on the beach using his arms as he returns from the sea after fishing overnight, in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 6, 2023. The former Tamil fighter lost both legs in 2009 as the nation’s generation-long civil war drew to a close and the Tamils retreated in defeat. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena An ethnic Tamil Hindu devotee with religious marks on his forehead gets down from a car next to a passerby near a Hindu temple in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. ( AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/421f65a316044f8e93b13092a853888c/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
An ethnic Tamil Hindu devotee with religious marks on his forehead gets down from a car next to a passerby near a Hindu temple in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. ( AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena An ethnic Tamil woman works in a field on a piece of land, which was recently vacated by government forces, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/7a91fce9c30b461f91c6619746975544/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
An ethnic Tamil woman works in a field on a piece of land, which was recently vacated by government forces, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Nat Castaneda The Danish family of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also known as the Tamil Tigers, attend a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. Members of the Tamil diaspora from across Europe gathered to remember Prabhakaran 15 years after the end of Sri Lanka's civil war, which pitted Sri Lankan government forces against Tamil Tiger separatists. (AP Photo/Nat Castañeda)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/33db65557bbc41beaf69d9da61647cd9/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
The Danish family of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also known as the Tamil Tigers, attend a memorial service at the DGI Huset Conference Center in Vejle, Denmark, May 18, 2024. Members of the Tamil diaspora from across Europe gathered to remember Prabhakaran 15 years after the end of Sri Lanka's civil war, which pitted Sri Lankan government forces against Tamil Tiger separatists. (AP Photo/Nat Castañeda)
![Eranga Jayawardena An ethnic Tamil rides his bicycle past a mural portraying a scene from an Hindu epic in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/5023dcaf6b6245f6bc11ec7689744470/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
An ethnic Tamil rides his bicycle past a mural portraying a scene from an Hindu epic in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Ethnic Tamil boys ride together on a bicycle to their school in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago.(AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/1524d74c97df4f7398253488bd098754/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Ethnic Tamil boys ride together on a bicycle to their school in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago.(AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena An ethnic Tamil woman draws water from a well built on a piece of land, which was recently vacated by government forces, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/1508924839b0411480a4eb801dd9a5a8/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
An ethnic Tamil woman draws water from a well built on a piece of land, which was recently vacated by government forces, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Mary Jensi, an ethnic Tamil woman, stands inside her newly constructed house as her elder son sleeps on the unpaved floor, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, on May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/9e552f065ba141c9b15c7042fa56c6c5/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Mary Jensi, an ethnic Tamil woman, stands inside her newly constructed house as her elder son sleeps on the unpaved floor, in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, on May 5, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Elke Bruhn Hoffmann FILE - Members of the Tamil minority, who fled to West Berlin and demanded political asylum, protest on Aug. 7, 1983, when Sri Lanka's civil war broke out. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Elke Bruhn Hoffmann, File)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/72bbd397c4444858b9c9587392a3d4e8/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
FILE - Members of the Tamil minority, who fled to West Berlin and demanded political asylum, protest on Aug. 7, 1983, when Sri Lanka's civil war broke out. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Elke Bruhn Hoffmann, File)
![Eranga Jayawardena Sri Lankan visitors look at a war memorial in Puthukkudiyiruppu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. The memorial was built to remember Sri Lankan soldiers who died during the civil war, which ended 15 years ago and had pitted the government forces against the Tamil Tiger separatists. ( AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/edb5ce5e062b4e2d9f1f39da1469cbd0/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Sri Lankan visitors look at a war memorial in Puthukkudiyiruppu, Sri Lanka, May 7, 2024. The memorial was built to remember Sri Lankan soldiers who died during the civil war, which ended 15 years ago and had pitted the government forces against the Tamil Tiger separatists. ( AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
![Eranga Jayawardena Ethnic Tamil girls attend a sewing class in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 8, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)](https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/8176311a4880406498b31cd1d02a785a/preview/preview.jpg?s=680x&wm=false)
Ethnic Tamil girls attend a sewing class in Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka, May 8, 2024. Sri Lanka's Tamil people still live in the shadow of defeat in the civil war that tore the country apart until it ended 15 years ago. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)