Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Colombo, March 18 (Daily Mirror) – Declassified documents from Israel’s Foreign Ministry have revealed that former Sri Lankan President Junius Richard Jayewardene had requested $1 million from Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad to finance his election campaign in 1987.

According to cables dated August 6 and August 14, 1987, the request was made during a meeting with a Mossad representative, at a time when the Sri Lankan government was facing mounting pressure from Arab states and local opposition to shut down the Israeli Interests Section in Colombo.

The revelations were reported in an article by The Wire, based on partially declassified files from the Israel State Archives detailing relations between Sri Lanka and Israel during the mid-1980s.

Sri Lanka had severed diplomatic ties with Israel in 1970 under pressure from Arab nations. However, ties were partially restored in 1984 with the opening of an Israeli Interests Section at the U.S. Embassy in Colombo, amid the escalation of the island’s civil war. Documents indicate that Sri Lanka sought Israeli assistance to counter Tamil militancy.

By the late 1980s, Israel had supplied military equipment to Sri Lanka worth approximately $30 million. This included Dvora-class fast patrol boats, Mini-Uzi submachine guns, electronic fencing, communications systems, and ammunition. Israeli personnel also trained Sri Lankan military units and members of the President’s security detail.

Cables reveal that Israeli instructors, sometimes presented as agricultural advisers, were involved in training operations aimed at strengthening Sri Lankan forces, particularly in the north. Israeli officials believed such training could help local forces mount offensives in areas such as Jaffna.

The documents further show that Israeli assistance extended to the Special Task Force (STF), an elite police unit that had faced serious allegations of human rights abuses. Despite warnings from U.S. officials about the long-term consequences of supporting the STF, Israel continued its involvement, including training a newly formed VIP protection unit following an assassination attempt on the President in 1987.

While the cables confirm Jayewardene’s request for campaign funding, there is no evidence in the released documents that Israel provided the $1 million. However, Israeli officials acknowledged their strategic interest in his political survival, noting that a victory by the opposition could have led to the expulsion of Israeli representatives from Sri Lanka.

The files also highlight concerns among Israeli diplomats regarding Sri Lanka’s deteriorating human rights situation during the civil war, including reports of civilian casualties, enforced disappearances, and allegations of torture. Despite these concerns, Israel continued its military and intelligence assistance, viewing it as critical to maintaining bilateral relations.

The documents provide rare insight into the depth of cooperation between Sri Lanka and Israel during one of the most turbulent periods in the island’s history, as well as the geopolitical considerations that shaped those ties.