Two advocacy groups have asked Switzerland to charge a former Sri Lankan army commander with war crimes.

The two Swiss-based groups — the Society for Threatened Peoples and Track Impunity Always — filed a criminal complaint against Jagath Dias with Switzerland's attorney general. The allegations accuse him of ordering the bombing of civilians and hospitals during the final phase of Sri Lanka's civil war, which ended in 2009 with the defeat of Tamil rebels.

Dias has been serving as Sri Lanka's deputy ambassador in Germany since 2009. But he also is accredited with diplomatic status by Switzerland and the Vatican.

There was no immediate reaction from the Sri Lankan government on the matter, but Sri Lankan officials indicated that a statement may be forthcoming.