Twenty Sri Lankan prisoners held at Kuwait’s Central Jail have been repatriated to Sri Lanka this afternoon (26) under the Kuwait-Sri Lanka Prisoner Exchange Agreement. They arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport aboard a special Kuwaiti Air Force flight.
The prisoner exchange agreement, first signed in 2007, facilitated the return of 32 Sri Lankan inmates in early 2024. With this latest transfer, a total of 52 Sri Lankan prisoners have been repatriated under the arrangement.
However, it was reported that no Kuwaiti prisoners are currently in Sri Lanka’s custody to the date for exchange.
The returnees had been convicted of various offenses in Kuwait, including drug use, drug trafficking, and smuggling. They were arrested by Kuwaiti authorities, prosecuted, and subsequently sentenced to prison terms.
Upon arrival, Sri Lanka’s Prison Department officials took custody of the prisoners, who were later transferred to the Welikada Magazine Prison in Colombo.
