A Sri Lankan soldier takes part in a ceremony to commemorate the 16th anniversary of the National War Heroes Day, marking the end of the island's civil war, in front of the War Heroes Monument in Colombo on May 19, 2025. (Photo by Saman Abesiriwardana/Pacific Press via ZUMA Press Wire/Alamy Live News)





A train arrives at a station in Colombo, Sri Lanka on June 4, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





Boys fly a kite as tourists visit Galle Fort during sunset in Galle, Sri Lanka on June 20, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





People load a wild elephant into a truck before relocating it to Horowpathana Elephant Holding Ground, in Naula, Sri Lanka on June 27, 2025. (Photo by Thilina Kaluthotage/Reuters)





An elephant bathes in a river at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in Pinnawala, about 90 kms from Colombo on July 6, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





A wild Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) attempts to charge a car while crossing the Habarana-Trincomalee Road in Habarana, Sri Lanka, on July 12, 2025. (Photo by Krishan Kariyawasam/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





Sri Lankan traditional dancers perform during the annual Esala Perahera Buddhist cultural pageant at the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy, Sri Lanka, on August 4, 2025. (Photo by Krishan Kariyawasam/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu devotees celebrate annual Murugan festival near a temple in Colombo on August 7, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu devotees celebrate annual Murugan festival near a temple in Colombo on August 7, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





A decorated elephant carrying the sacred golden casket housing Lord Buddha's revered tooth relic, walks past the historic Buddhist Temple of the Tooth, as part of celebrations to mark the Buddhist festival of Esala Perahera, in the ancient hill capital of Kandy, on August 8, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





People take part in the Colombo International Kite Festival in Colombo on August 23, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





An elephant-shaped kite takes flight at the Colombo International Kite Festival in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, August 23, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)





Police restrain supporters of Sri Lanka's jailed former president Ranil Wickremesinghe during a protest ahead of his bail hearing at a street leading to the Colombo Fort magistrate's court in Colombo on August 26, 2025. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)





A street food vendor sells food to customers in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on September 17, 2025. (Photo by Thilina Kaluthotage/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





A man collects pink water lilies to sell for religious offerings in Colombo, Sri Lanka on October 6, 2025. (Photo by Krishan Kariyawasam/NurPhoto/Rex Features/Shutterstock)





Sri Lankan Hindu devotees light oil lamps during the Diwali festival at a Hindu temple in Colombo, Sri Lanka, 20 October 2025. Diwali, one of the most popular festivals in Hinduism, is celebrated by Hindus worldwide. Also known as the Festival of Lights, it symbolizes the victory of good over evil and commemorates Lord Rama's return to his kingdom, Ayodhya, after a 14-year exile. (Photo by Chamila Karunarathne/EPA)





Ilshan Madhuthisara, left, and Ranjith Kumara catch a giant snakehead fish at the Deduru Oya resovoire, in Walpaluwa village, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, October 29, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)





A fisherman brings his catch ashore from the Deduru Oya Reservoir, where giant snakeheads have become an invasive species in Walpaluwa village, Sri Lanka, Thursday, October 30, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)





Sanjeewa Kariyawasam, right, cleans a giant snakehead fish caught from the Deduru Oya Reservoir, in Walpaluwa, Sri Lanka, Thursday, October 30, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)





Sanjeewa Kariyawasam, right, cleans the flesh of a giant snakehead fish he caught with his wife before making salted dried fish in Walpaluwa, Sri Lanka, Thursday, October 30, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)