COLOMBO, Rabi'I 25, 1436, Jan 16, 2015, SPA -- Sri Lanka has lifted a ban on foreign travelers visiting the former war zone in the north of the country, its defence ministry said on Friday, as the new government promotes reconciliation with ethnic minority Tamils after a 26-year war, Reuters reported. Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's government imposed a travel ban on Oct. 15, weeks after the United Nations began a probe into alleged war crimes in the final phase of the civil war between the army and Tamil Tiger separatist rebels, which ended in 2009. Defence Ministry spokesman Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya in a statement said the National Security Council met under the newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena on Friday and lifted the ban. -- SPA 23:08 LOCAL TIME 20:08 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w