UNITED NATIONS, March 22 (UPI) -- A U.N. agency urged Sri Lanka Thursday to ensure those who allegedly committed war crimes during the country's civil war are held accountable.
The U.N. Human Rights Council voted to ask the Sri Lankan government to take "all necessary additional steps to fulfill its relevant legal obligations and commitment to initiate credible and independent actions to ensure justice, equity, accountability and reconciliation for all Sri Lankans."
The text was approved by a vote of 24-15, with 8 abstentions, the United Nations said.
After a conflict that had gone on for nearly three decades and killed thousands, Sri Lankan government forces declared victory over the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in 2009.
The Human Rights Council called on the Sri Lankan government to implement the resolutions in a report by the country's Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission released last December.
During the civil war, a three-member U.N. panel of experts on accountability issues during the civil war found there were credible reports that both government forces and the LTTE committed war crimes in the final months.
