Kinniya under police curfew

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 October 2003, 16:50 GMT]
The Divisional Secretariat division of Kinniya in the Trincomalee district has been brought under dusk-to-dawn curfew with effect from Thursday evening till Friday morning to defuse tension between Muslims and Tamils at the Faizal Nagar area following a land dispute, police said.

More police personnel have been deployed Thursday evening to maintain law and order in the village, law enforcement authorities said.

The dispute over a piece of land reached a climax Wednesday when groups of the two communities clashed each other, police said.

Some leading citizens from two communities last night attempted to bring a settlement between the two parties but it failed, sources said.

Tamils alleged Thursday that a group of men had assaulted their youths. Thereafter, about seventy Tamil families residing at Faizal Nagar sought refuge at the Eechantivu village. Muslims also alleged that their youths had also been assaulted, police said.

Meanwhile, Minister and the leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, Mr.Rauff Hakeem, Thursday arrived at Kinniya by SLAF helicopter and held a meeting at a Kinniya school.

He held discussions with local military and police officials and advised them to take appropriate measures to bring peace to the village, sources said.