The Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court has ordered the release of Mohamed Suhail, a 21-year-old aviation student, who was arrested and detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) over an anti-Israel post on social media.
During court proceedings today (15), Mohamed Suhail was presented in open court.
Representing the Sri Lanka Police, the OIC of the Dehiwala Police Station, Anuradha Herath, submitted to the magistrate the Attorney General’s recommendation requesting Mohamed Suhail’s release on bail.
Taking this into consideration, the Mount Lavinia Magistrate instructed the Police to release Mohamed Suhail on bail.
Representing Mohamed Suhail were senior attorney Geethma Fernando, along with attorneys Ilham Hasanali, Ashraf Mukhtar, and Behshad.
Mohamed Suhail, a resident of Mawanella, was first arrested in October 2024 near the Israeli consular premises in Dehiwala. Although initially detained for not carrying his national ID, he was released by the court after producing it, only to be re-arrested shortly after under the PTA based on the Instagram post showing the Israeli flag being trampled.
However, last week, the Dehiwala Police OIC informed the court they had “no objection” to granting bail as they had “found no evidence” against him.
The Dehiwala Police further informed that the 21-year-old had not committed any offence, despite being detained for nearly nine months under the PTA. (Newswire)