Gotabhaya Rajapaksa
| Gotabaya Rajapaksa ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ |
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|---|---|
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| Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence | |
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In office November 2005 – January 2015 |
|
| President | Mahinda Rajapaksa |
| Prime Minister |
Ratnasiri Wickremanayake D. M. Jayaratne |
| Preceded by | Major General Asoka Jayawardena |
| Succeeded by | B.M.U.D. Basnayake |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa June 20, 1949 Matara, Sri Lanka |
| Citizenship |
Sri Lanka United State of America |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Spouse(s) | Anoma Rajapaksa |
| Relations |
Mahinda Rajapaksa (brother) Basil Rajapaksa (brother) Chamal Rajapaksa (brother) |
| Children | Manoj Rajapaksa |
| Alma mater | Ananda College |
| Religion | Buddhist |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Sri Lanka |
| Service/branch | Sri Lankan Army |
| Years of service | 1971–1992 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Unit | Gajaba Regiment |
| Commands |
1st Gajaba Regiment General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University |
| Battles/wars |
Eelam War I Eelam War II Eelam War IV |
| Awards |
 Rana Sura PadakkamaDoctor of Letters (Honoris Causa), UoC |
Lieutenant Colonel Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa, RWP, RSP, psc, GR (Sinhalese: ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ) (born 20 June 1949) is a retired officer of the Sri Lanka Army, a former Secretary to Ministry of Defence and Urban Development of Sri Lanka. After serving through the early parts of the country's civil war with Tamil Tiger rebels, he retired from the Army in 1992 and emigrated to the USA. With the election of his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was appointed Defence Secretary in November 2005.
As Defence Secretary, Rajapaksa played a key role towards the successes achieved by the Sri Lankan Military in defeating the Tamil Tigers and ending Sri Lanka's 26-year-long civil war in May 2009 with the political leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the military strategy of General Sarath Fonseka. He was also one of the top targets of the Tamil Tigers, and survived an assassination attempt in December 2006 by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber.
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