WASHINGTON - Avril Haines, President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for director of national intelligence, took questions from senators Tuesday in a confirmation hearing that was notably free of the partisan rancor that has characterized so many oversight sessions during the Trump administration.

Conscious of the security concerns in the country, the nearly 1.4 million Muslim voters of Sri Lanka will be strongly influenced this time by the election manifestos as well as the ‘promise-upholding’ credentials of the presidential candidates, who pledge an end to terrorism without multiplying extremism among the different communities.