Youth shot dead, Jaffna village rises against intelligence camp

[TamilNet, Saturday, 29 April 2006, 07:57 GMT]
Motorbike riding gunmen, who shot and killed a Tamil youth Friday at Urelu in Valikamam, Jaffna, rushed into Sri Lanka Army Intelligence camp in the area, villagers who chased the gunmen away said. More than a hundred enraged villagers surrounded the SLA camp Friday night and Urelu was shut down in protest Saturday as the villagers launched a protest hartal against the recent kilings in Valikamam. Protesting villagers say that the Urelu intelligence camp is behind the killings in a terror-campaign targeting auto-rikshaw drivers and traders. An auto driver was recently gunned down at Urelu junction.

Friday's victim, Mariafernando Suthaharan, was a mason worker from Pokkanai in Urelu. He was shot killed around 7.15 a.m while he was on a motorbike on Thleepan Road in Urelu. The gunmen had followed Suthaharan in another motorbike.

Shops and other institutions of the area remained closed as the area observed a protest hartal in full measure.