Tamil Americans call for moratorium on military aid to Colombo

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 November 2006, 03:12 GMT]
Expressing condemnation over killing of at least 65 internally displaced people (IDPs) who were seeking shelter in a school in Vakarai by the government of Sri Lanka," a joint press release issued by Tamil organizations in the US Friday, called upon the international community to "impose a moratorium on military assistance to GOSL," and urged "the co-chairs of the peace process to explore modalities that will allow the peoples on the island of Sri Lanka to live with dignity, to determine their political and economic future without interference, and to ensure regional security."
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SLN suspends unloading goods at Pt. Pedro harbour

[TamilNet, Saturday, 11 November 2006, 00:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) cancelled the temporary permission given to Vadmaradchy fishermen to fish in waters up to Munai in Point Pedro Friday, and scoured large stretches of Point Pedro seas for bodies of sailors killed in the Thursday clashes with Sea Tigers, fishermen society sources in Point Pedro said. Unloading essential goods at Pt. Pedro harbour was suspended the whole day Friday.
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U.S. regrets loss of innocent life in Sri Lankan military attack in Vakarai

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 November 2006, 12:05 GMT]
The U.S. Department of State in a media note issued on Thursday said the U.S "strongly regrets" the loss of innocent life caused by the shelling by the Sri Lankan military in Vakarai region Wednesday. The U.S. urged both the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to honor their commitment to abide by the cease fire, end all hostilities immediately, and return to negotiations to find a peaceful solution to the conflict. "We are also disturbed that the Head of the Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission and his delegation came under fire in Pooneryn in the north of Sri Lanka the same day," the statement said.
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LTTE Political Head condemns Raviraj assassination in Colombo

[TamilNet, Friday, 10 November 2006, 11:02 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Political Head S.P.Thamilchelvan condemned the assassination of Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian Nadarajah Raviraj and accused the Sri Lankan state as responsible for the systematic slaying of humanitarian and democratic voices of Tamils. "Mr. Raviraj was slain in Colombo where he voiced against the abductions and killings carried out by the Sri Lankan military and it's paramilitaries," he said.
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Sea Tigers sink 2 Sri Lankan attack crafts, seize armament, capture troopers

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 November 2006, 12:45 GMT]
A Sea Tiger flotilla clashed with Sri Lanka Navy in the Northern waters killing 25 SLN troopers, capturing 4 troopers alive and destroying two Dvora Fast Attack Crafts, LTTE's Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan told TamilNet. The two Dvora FACs were seized and the Sea Tigers dismantled all the armament including a 23 mm cannon and a HK AGL gun. Dead body of a SLN trooper was also recovered by the Tigers. The clash erupted as Sea Tigers engaged in training activities were provoked by Sri Lanka Navy vessels in the seas off Nagarkovil in LTTE territorial waters, according to the Tiger spokesman. A third Dvora FAC was damaged. Five Sea Tigers were killed in close gunbattle, he said.
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SLA denied transport to Vaharai injured for 3 hours- Elilan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 November 2006, 11:56 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army (SLA) has not only killed 42 civilians and injured more than 122 others in Kathiravely in LTTE controlled Batticaloa district but has violated all humanitarian norms by delaying giving permission to ambulances to take the injured to the hospital, S Elilan, the Political Head of LTTE for Trincomalee district said Wednesday.
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SLMM head visits Mannar

[TamilNet, Thursday, 09 November 2006, 11:26 GMT]
The head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Major General Lars Johan Solvberg, Thursday afternoon around 12:30 p.m. arrived in Mannar by land and held discussions with SLMM monitors in Mannar district office. The discussion centred on the ground situation prevailing in the district. He left Mannar to Colombo around 1:30 p.m. the same day, sources said.
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FMM deplores SLA's censoring of Jaffna press

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2006, 11:52 GMT]
The Free Media Movement (FMM) in a press release issued in Colombo Tuesday said that FMM is "deeply concerned that the media situation in the Jaffna Peninsula is extremely dire, with many media establishments and journalists now preferring an overt legal censorship of the media as opposed to frequent thinly veiled threats and intimidation by armed forces, including the Army."


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Sonobo Children’s Home in Vaharai attacked, 12 children injured - TRO

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2006, 11:07 GMT]
Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO), engaged in emergency rescue work at the IDP camp in Kathiraveli school Wednesday evening, said TRO’s Sonobo Children’s Home located close to the school was also attacked by SLA artillery. 12 children were wounded. Forty bodies have been recovered including 6 babies between the ages of 3 and 6 months, the TRO statement said. 76 persons have been admitted to the hospital.
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SLMM Head, visiting Pooneryn, comes under artillery fire

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2006, 10:04 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired artillery shells crossed over the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Major General Lars Johan Sølvberg and his delegation who were visiting the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Pooneryn jetty Wednesday evening to undertake a feasibiity study on Colombo's latest suggestion in opening Pooneryin Sangupitty Road as an alternative to A9. SLA fired artillery shells exploded 200 meters behind in Pooneryn jetty area while the delegation was visiting the site for inspection around 3:15 p.m. The Norwegian Major General returned safely, LTTE officials told TamilNet. While returning, artillery shells exploded at 20 meter distance.
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Artillery duel injures four women, hundreds flee Kudumbimalai

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2006, 02:05 GMT]
Four women were injured when a mortar shell launched from Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) area targeting the Murkodanchenai Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camp fell and exploded on a house near the SLA camp Tuesday around 9:30 a.m., security sources from Batticaloa said. Meanwhile, hundreds of families from LTTE-controlled Kudumbimalai area sought shelter in adjoining jungles seeking safety from SLA fire from Valaichenai Brigade camp Tuesday night, LTTE sources said.
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Governor rejects appeals from trapped Jaffna workers

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 November 2006, 01:07 GMT]
Rear Admiral (Retd) Mohan Wijeyawickrema, Governor of the North East Province (NEP), rejected Tuesday an appeal made by government employees including teachers from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) held areas, now trapped in the Jaffna peninsula with the closure of A9 route since August 11, to let them stay in the peninsula due to unsafe conditions in their places of work, said civil sources from Jaffna.
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Fisherman shot dead in Valaichenai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 November 2006, 08:07 GMT]
Unidentified armed men took away a fisherman from his home at Kinaiyadi Nagathambiran temple street in Valaichenai police division in Batticaloa and shot him dead Monday around 11:00 p.m, said Valaichenai police.
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SLA censors Heroes' Day coverage

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 November 2006, 21:25 GMT]
"It is an outright violation of the freedom of press by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) 512nd Division high officials to threaten the Editors of the Jaffna peninsula Tamil dailies not to publish any news related to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and not to publish LTTE leader Pirabakaran's photo or his annual November Heroes' Day message," S. Gajendran, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian for Jaffna district, told TamilNet Monday.
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LTTE reiterates SLMM access to Northern FDL, Vaharai region

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 November 2006, 15:01 GMT]
Colombo should allow the neutral Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) officials to inspect the forward defence line (FDL) areas and provide the SLMM access Vaharai region to undertake independent verification of the ground situation, instead of producing "baseless allegations of LTTE attacks," in Colombo media, LTTE's Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan said Monday night. Sri Lankan armed forces have intensified the attacks with a "military intention" of launching another offensive aiming to escalate the armed hostilities, the Tigers spokesman told media from Kilinochchi.
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Court allows investigation of Sinhalese suspected of spying for LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 November 2006, 13:41 GMT]
The Colombo Magistrate Court granted permission to the Sri Lanka forces on Monday to commence extensive inquiries into the activities of two Sinhala civilians arrested on suspicion of passing information to the Intelligence Division of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE ).The Sri Lanka forces allege that they have been collecting information about the movements of the Tamil minister Douglas Devananda, sources in Colombo said.
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SLAF bombs Vaharai, IDPs flee SLA shelling

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 November 2006, 11:42 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) launched artillery attacks from Valaichenai SLA camp and Karadikulam SLA camp towards Vaharai intensified since Sunday night amid troop deployment at Gajuwatte SLA camp. LTTE's Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan Monday said Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) carried out 2 sorties of aerial bombardment in Paalchenai and Vammivedduvan in Vaharai region in Batticaloa district Monday noon. "All communication and transportation facilities towards Vaharai has been cut off. Even the small amount of humanitarian supplies reaching the region twice a week, has been blocked by the Sri Lankan military," Mr. Ilanthirayan told TamilNet.
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Vaharai residents face severe food shortage- MP

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 November 2006, 01:14 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops of Mankerni Camp have refused permission to transport food items beyond their check point into LTTE- controlled Vaharai Region for more than a week, resulting in 43,000 civilians of the area facing acute shortage of essential food items, P.Ariyanenthiran, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Member of Parliament, Batticaloa District said in a communiqué issued to the press on Sunday.
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Braving sea of perils

[TamilNet, Sunday, 05 November 2006, 01:11 GMT]
The abundance of fish stock in Mullaitivu seas has provided a life line to fisher families from littoral villages dotting 70km Mullaitivu coast stretching from Kokkilai in the south to Iranaipalai in the north. Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has occupied 13km of this coastline from Kokkilai to Nayaaru from 1985. Although fall of SLA's Mullaitivu garrison to Liberation Tigers in 1996 brought relief to fisher families, continued harassment by the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) and threats from the SLA camps in the southern coast of the district continue to plague fisher families who brave the seas to earn a living.
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SLA blocks Vaharai students from taking Scholarship test

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 November 2006, 22:12 GMT]
Despite arrangements made with the help of UNICEF for the students to sit the Fifth year State Scholarship Examination. SLA troopers at Mankerny and Cadjuwatte SLA camps stopped the teachers taking question papers and the students from proceeding to Vaharai, Batticaloa Education officials said Saturday.
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