Sri Lanka on May 12

This is 12th of May. It is day 132 of the year. As of today, there are 233 days left until the end of the year. If you are curious about the most important and notable historical footprint of Sri Lanka, let us delve into more On This Day events to uncover fascinating tidbits from the nation's history that covers for 365 days.

Today’s Highlight

• 1656 – The Dutch captured Colombo from the Portuguese.
• 1656 – Parts of the island became a colony governed by the Dutch East India Company.
• 1660 – Adriaan van der Meyden’s term as governor of Dutch Ceylon ended, and Rijckloff van Goens began his term.
• 1985 – The Valvettithurai massacre in Jaffna claimed the lives of 46–70 individuals.
• 1999 – Sri Lankan Army’s Operation Rana Gosa concluded after 2 months and 8 days, recapturing 535 square kilometers of territory.
• 2006 – In the Sri Lankan Navy’s Battle of Point Pedro, off the coast of Jaffna, the Navy achieved victory by repelling a Tamil Tiger group attack on the troop transport MV Pearl Cruise II, which was carrying 710 soldiers.
• 2022 – Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as prime minister for the record sixth time, prompted by the 2022 Sri Lankan protests.