Sarath Fonseka to visit India seeking military cooperation - report

[TamilNet, Saturday, 01 March 2008, 12:46 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Army commander, Maj. Gen. Sarath Fonseka is scheduled to pay a six-day visit to India Sunday to "deepen military cooperation between the two countries," according to a news report by the Indo Asian News Agency (IANS), Saturday. "Fonseka is sure to discuss military cooperation with India, which has become a touchy issue in bilateral relations," the IANS report said.
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Bruce Fein: Independence promotes stability

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 February 2008, 02:33 GMT]
"The reason why the Kosovo independence is so significant is because it addresses an issue that's prevalent throughout the world, for example Sri Lanka, where you have a minority that has been oppressed by the majority. And we’ve always had rather blurry lines in knowing, well, when does the oppression reach a sufficiently intense and egregious level that you're entitled to walk away from a sovereign and establish your separate statehood?" asks Bruce Fein in a video commentary on the global significance of Kosovo independence given to U.S-based Real News Network Sunday.
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Suspects remanded in attempted murder of Sarath Fonseka

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 February 2008, 12:27 GMT]
Colombo Fort Magistrate Mr.Namal Bandara Thursday ordered further remand till February 27 for two suspects in the suicide attack attempt made on Sri Lanka Army Commander Sarath Fonseka on August 25, 2006 near the headquarters of the Sri Lanka Army. The army commander escaped. But 11 soldiers of the SLA were killed and 25 injured, legal sources said.
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Fonseka vows not to leave war to successor

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 January 2008, 06:27 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army Commander Lt. Gen. G.S.C Fonseka, due for retirement this year, has claimed that he would not leave the war to his succeeding commander, at a New Year party hosted by him Friday evening to select local and international journalists at his residence at Bauddhaloka Mawatha in Colombo. Fonseka was being tactfully upbeat as news of an explosion inside Fort Railway station threatened to dampen spirits at the cocktail party.
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"Deepening media crisis in Sri Lanka"- IFJ

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 08 January 2008, 03:45 GMT]
Expressing alarm at the comments at made by Sri Lanka's Army (SLA) Commander Major General Sarath Fonseka labelling some journalists and sections of the media as "traitors," the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is a press release issued Monday said, "the statement by Major General Fonseka and the allegations of death threats against journalists are indicative of a deepening media crisis in Sri Lanka."
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SLA, LTTE skirmishes in Northern FDLs

[TamilNet, Friday, 30 November 2007, 00:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) attempts to advance in Ki’laali and Mukamaalai north Front Defence Line (FDL) positions Thursday morning were repulsed by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, sources near northern FDL areas said. Meanwhile, SLA Chief, Major. General Sarath Fonseka, visited Palaali SLA Head Quarters (HQ) Thursday, where he met with SLA high command in Jaffna peninsula, and reviewed military plans.
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Gunmen shoot dead two Sinhala traders in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 November 2007, 11:31 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen Thursday noon shot and killed two Sinhalese civilians at Iyangkea'ni in Ea'raavoor, Police said. Ea'raavoor is located 12 km northwest Batticaloa.
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Rights activist questions progress of CoI, IIGEP

[TamilNet, Sunday, 18 November 2007, 13:47 GMT]
The Commission of Inquiry (CoI) and the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) appointed to by the Government of Sri Lanka in response to calls for international monitoring on human rights have achieved only a limited progress in investigating 16-rights cases identified for investigations, says Bhavani Fonseka, a senior researcher at Center for Policy Alternatives (CPA), and questions "if anything is possible to achieve in a situation where independence of the CoI is questioned, politicization and interference remains, [and] there is lack of progress in witness and victim protection."
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SLA arrests 22 Tamil youths in Chinnakku’lam IDP Centre

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 November 2007, 08:23 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) arrested 22 Tamil youths in Chinnakku’lam Centre for Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in Trincomalee district during a search operation conducted Saturday early morning, according to complaints made by the IDPs to Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian K. Thurairatnasingam. The MP has registered complaints with Sea’runuva’ra police station and informed the matter to Vaakarai SLA Commander Berty Fonseka.
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Civilian seeks protection with Jaffna HRC

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 November 2007, 07:11 GMT]
A 32-year old civilian from Sarasaalai North, Thenmaraadchi sought protection Friday with Human Rights Commission (HRC) Jaffna due to death threats from Sri Lanka Army and SLA- backed paramilitaries.
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"Disappearances and killings will continue" - Fonseka

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 November 2007, 03:15 GMT]
Disappearances and killings of will continue as long as ‘anti-terrorist’ operations are continuing, Sri Lanka’s Army commander, Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka said this week in a interview to British investigative reporters. Asked about human rights abuses in the newly captured Eastern province, the commander replied: “This area is not a normal area. So people getting killed and some people going missing will happen as far as the anti-terrorist operations are continuing.”
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Acrimony flares, US says diplomats not LTTE’s target

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 March 2007, 00:13 GMT]
Amid growing acrimony within the Sri Lankan government over the LTTE mortar attack Tuesday on military helicopters carrying foreign ambassadors and UN officials to Batticaloa district, the American ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert O. Blake, contradicted Colombo’s assertion that the Tigers had tried to assassinate the diplomats. Meanwhile Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary says the diplomats should share the blame for the near-disaster for asking to visit Batticaloa. He slammed as “interference” attempts by foreign dignitaries and NGOs to visit the war torn Northeast.


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Chavakacheri courts orders action against SLA officers

[TamilNet, Friday, 16 February 2007, 04:49 GMT]
In a historic ruling, Chavakacheri courts, said Thursday that there is sufficient evidence of direct involvement of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) officers in the disappearance of a number of youths in Thenmaradchchy area in 1996, and issued orders that further action be taken by Jaffna High Courts, legal sources in Jaffna said. The case against the accused officers of SLA was being heard at Chavakacheri courts since Monday, 12 February.
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No confidence on Police inquiry - SL Minister

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 February 2007, 10:49 GMT]
Anura Bandaranaike, the Sri Lankan Minister of National Heritage, in a Question of Privilege, raised in the Sri Lankan Parliament Thursday, charged that there were "forces within the government," surrounding the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse, conspiring against Bandaranaike family. Mr. Bandaranaike, who did not directly point the finger at the Sri Lankan President, said some persons close to Mr. Rajapakse, with "American passports" were behind the death threats issued against him and Mangala Samaraweera, the minister of ports and aviation. He further told the Lankan parliament that he had no confidence that the police would hold proper inquiry into his complaint.
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Vaharai tragedy

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 January 2007, 02:05 GMT]
Following Sri Lanka's Military Commander Lt.Gen Sarath Fonseka's assertion that Sri Lankan Forces will evict Liberation Tigers from the East withn the next two months, Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has intensified shelling and artillery attacks into Vaharai.
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Sri Lanka military vows to ‘annihilate’ LTTE in east then north

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 January 2007, 14:02 GMT]
After taking control of the eastern province in the next two months, Sri Lanka’s military will recapture the areas held by the Liberation Tigers in the north of the island, the Army (SLA) Chief said this week.
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Three pronged artillery barrage on Vaharai villages

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 December 2006, 09:35 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army, with massive firepower, launched artillery barrage simultaneously from three directions, Kallaru SLA camp, north of Vaharai, Karadikkulam, in the west and from Mankerni SLA camp in the south towards Kathiraveli, Kandalady, Palchenai, Vammiveduvan, Vellayadimadu and Uriyankattu villages in the Vahara region. The artillery barrage, launched around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, continued for more than 8 hours. Vaharai hospital sources reported artillery explosions 200 meters close to Vaharai hospital. Casualty details were not available.
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CFA, buried

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 December 2006, 15:23 GMT]
Head of Sri Lanka's Peace Secretariat, Palitha Kohona, has told the visiting Norwegian Peace Envoy Jon Hanssen-Bauer, that the Sri Lankan government was reviewing a proposal of proscribing the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and had asked the Peace Envoy not to undertake his scheduled mission to Kilinochchi until a Government decision on Wednesday, according to media reports in Colombo. Analysts view the move as a step to effectively nullify the already defunct Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) that specifically prohibits all military offensives including aerial bombardment, offensive naval operations, assassinations, suicide missions and the activities by deep penetration units.
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Gotabaya Rajapakse narrowly escapes Bomb blast

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 December 2006, 06:41 GMT]
Gotabaya Rajapakse, the Sri Lankan Secretary of Defence and brother of SL President Mahinda Rajapakse, narrowly escaped a bomb blast in Colombo Friday morning. A security guard providing escort to the convoy was killed in the attack. Seven security commandos were among the 14 wounded in the attack, suspected to be a suicide mission, Police said. Lt. Col. (retd.) Gotabaya Rajapakse, who advocates a military solution to the Tamil national problem, was on his way to a defence meeting with Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse when the attack took place.
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SLA intensifies deployment in Northern Front, curfew imposed

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 October 2006, 05:59 GMT]
Amid reports of deployment of additional troops and military hardware in Northern Front, Sri Lanka Army, from Palaly military base, Sunday morning announced curfew in villages near Northern Front Forward Defence Line (FDLs). Meanwhile, Sri Lankan troopers engaged in a major training exercise throughout Saturday night in Palaly, Thondamanarau lagoon and Valalai area in Vadamaradchy sector of the Jaffna district. The SLA rehearsal comes following a sudden visit by Sri Lanka Army commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka to Palaly Saturday as Parties, the GoSL and LTTE delegations were engaged in talks in Geneva, Switzerland.


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