New Sri Lanka mass grave discovery reopens old wounds for Tamils

A rusted gate behind which Sri Lankan excavators are digging the latest mass grave they have found from the country's 26-year-long civil war, in Chemmani, Sri Lanka [Jeevan Ravindran/Al Jazeera]

Chemmani, Sri Lanka — Less than 100 metres (328 ft) from a busy road, policemen stand on watch behind a pair of rust coloured gates that lead to a cemetery in the outskirts of Jaffna, the capital of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province.

The officers are guarding Sri Lanka’s most recently unearthed mass grave, which has so far led to the discovery of 19 bodies, including those of three babies.