2 youths killed, paramilitary violence escalates in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Friday, 28 April 2006, 10:19 GMT]
Two unidentified gunmen riding in a motorbike shot and killed two Tamil youths, Friday morning around 8:15 a.m. near Kinnayadi Nagathambiran temple, Valaichenai Police said. The killers were suspected to be paramilitary operatives, civilian sources said.

One of the victims, Mr. Vinayagam Kamalan, is a father of two sons and the other victim, Mr. Selvam Piraba, was recently married.

Two motorbike riding gunmen shot and killed the victims while they were crossing the river near the Sri Lanka Army camp in Kinnayadi. The gunmen fled after the shooting, said the residents.

Valaichenai police is investigating the killings.

In another incident, two men entering into the market on the Valaichenai-Kalkuda road on a motorcycle, were shot Friday morning around 10.15 a.m. by unidentified gunmen arriving in a white van, residents in Kalkuda said.

No one was injured. The gunmen speeded away in their van from the area.

The fleeing gunmen dragged in a youth into their white van, in front of the Valaichenai Annur National school and assaulted him. They fired shots into the sky before leaving the scene, said eyewitnesses.

Tension prevailed in the Valaichenai market area for a while which was deserted for a couple of hours.

Meanwhile, the eleven youths arrested by Eravur police in the roundup of the Eravur public market Thursaday have not been produced at the Courts and are still under police detention, police sources said.