SLA kills seven civilians

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 October 1999, 14:30 GMT]
Seven persons, including a woman, who were on their way to cross over the Jaffna Lagoon, from the Thenmaradchi to the Pooneryn area, on the night of 15 October were killed when the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) opened fire said sources in Jaffna.

Sources in Jaffna said the victims were from Nunavil, Meesalai area in the Thenmaradchi, and SLA soldiers who were lying in ambush had shot them dead.

SLA sources claimed that fighting broke out in the area when soldiers clashed with LTTE infiltrators around 10 p.m., which lasted for a couple of hours.

The following morning the SLA handed over the bodies of a woman and two youths to the Police.

On Tuesday, October 19, the fishermen informed the police about three bodies that had been washed ashore at Kerathivu. One of the bodies had been decapitated and the head was found separately said sources.

The Police had handed over the bullet riddled bodies to the Jaffna Teaching hospital claiming they were LTTE members.

When the victims' relatives went to the hospital to collect the bodies the police had asked them to sign a paper stating they were members of the Liberation Tigers.