Tigers attak PLOTE-SLA camp

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 May 1998, 23:59 GMT]
Two soldiers were killed in the LTTE attack on the Karuththapalam PLOTE-SLA camp in the early hours of the morning tody , said SLA sources in Batticaloa this morning. They said that the fighting which started around 1.30 a.m went on till 4 a.m. this morning.

They said SLA troops have captured the bodies of ten Liberation Tigers who were killed in the fighting.

Reports said that the PLOTE had withdrawn in the face of the attack first, and later the SLA had withdrawn from their camp as well.

The LTTE had held the camp for about an hour and is believed to have ransacked the armoury.

The Karuththappalam PLOTE-SLA camp is 200 yards from the Chenkalady junction on the road to Maha Oya. Chenkalady is 10 km north of Batticaloa.

The camp is under the command of the SLA officer holding the rank of Captain. Fifty fully armed PLOTE cadres were operating from the camp said SLA sources.

They also said that 60 armed TELO cadres operate from their camp in the vicinity of the PLOTE-SLA detachment.

Meanwhile PLOTE sources in Batticaloa said that one of their members Selvakumar Yogeswaran who was wounded in the LTTE attack in the early of the morning today died at the Batticaloa hospital.

The PLOTE sources said that the body of one of their members Subramaniam Baskaran who was killed in the LTTE attack has been found and is at the Eravur hospital.

The following PLOTE cadres wounded in the attack are being treated at the Batticaloa hospital:

PLOTEs Chenkalady camp commander Guru (Manikapody Kandasamy) Kurusethan Jegan, 18 Selvarajah Sukanthan, 15 Nadarajah Pirabakaran, 17 Rasaiah Sukirtharajan, 22

A TELO cadre in the groups camp which is 200 yards from the PLOTE-SLA camp, identified as, Vethanayagam Satheeskumar, 14 was also wounded in the cross-fire.

A civilian identified as Visuvalingam Mylvaganam, 45, was also wounded in the cross-fire.

The body of an another civilian identified as Sinnathurai Kathiramalai, 50, of Chenkalady was found during the clearing operation following the withdraw of the Liberation Tigers from the PLOTE-SLA camp.

The following are the wounded SLA soldiers admitted so far to the Batticaloa hospital:

U.M.E. Silva, 35 N.Gunathilaka, 29 N. Chamintha, 20 M.M.S.J. Bandara, 23 Thuwan Kukkius, 29 Sunil Shantha, 38 A.K. Jeyanantha, 35 Upanantha, 35

A spokesman for the Razeek group said today that they had ambushed one of the three LTTE assault units which were on their way to attack the Karuththapppalam PLOTE-SLA camp at Iluppadichchenai, 7 km south west of Chenkalady junction in the Batticaloa district.

He said that that the leader of the Razeek group ambush party had informed their camp in Batticaloa about the interception. He said that their ambush party is still in the area.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) base, 3 km from the Batticaloa town, and the SLA camp at Kommathurai, 2 km north of Chenkaladi, were shelled at the same time the attack was mounted on Karuppulam camp.