Ammunition, grenades discovered in Omanthai well

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 March 2004, 11:54 GMT]
A demining official, Bala, attached to the Swiss Demining Federation (FSD), involved in demining in Vavuniya and Mannar, said Wednesday that deminers have discovered a cache of ammunition and grenades from a irrigation well located in a field behind the Omanthai Maha Vidiyalayam, sources said.

FSD de-miners are clearing the well from mortar shells and other explosives.

One 60mm mortar, Eighteen 120mm mortars, one hand grenade, 35 other explosive devices and 26 fuses were removed from the well. The deminers suspect that further ammunition are still buried deeper inside the well, and the effort to remove them are still underway, according to sources.

Sri Lanka Army (SLA) captured Omanthai from Liberation Tigers (LTTE) during the "Jaya Sikurui" offensive SLA undertook from Thandikulam on 13 May 1997. From this period and throughout the last two years after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the LTTE and the Government of Sri Lanka, the Sri Lanka Army has been occupying Omanthai Maha Vidyalayam which is part of the large garrison of the SLA in the war-ravaged Omanthai.




One of the FSD de-miner is inspecting a mortar shell removed from an open dug well behind Omanthai Madhya Mahavidyalam in Vavuniya