Pakistan ‘guiding’ Sri Lanka’s war

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 August 2006, 05:16 GMT]
A group of Pakistan Air Force officers stationed in Colombo have been guiding the Sri Lankan military in carrying out air-mounted operations against the LTTE, a former counter-terrorism chief of India’s External intelligence says. The Pakistani officers have also been involved in drawing up plans for a decapitation airstrike with bunker-buster bombs to kill LTTE leader Vellupillai Pirapaharan, B. Raman says. The appointment of recently retired Deputy Chief of the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) as Islamabad’s representative to Sri Lanka is a deepening of Pakistan’s support, he says, adding the move is a concern for India’s national security.
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EU ban gave Sri Lanka Carte Blanche - SLMM Head

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 August 2006, 12:42 GMT]
Major General Ulf Henricsson, the Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), in an interview to AFP, Thursday, criticised the European Union for having ignored a "seven-point memo" sent by the SLMM before banning the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The EU ruling meant the Sri Lankan government thought it had "carte blanche" to take on the Tigers, the outgoing Head of Mission said adding that he had become "more convinced than other" that there would be no military solution to the Sri Lankan crisis.
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SLAF Kfir jets bomb Vadamaradchi East

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 August 2006, 10:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bombers Thursday morning bombed Kattaikadu area in Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam controlled Vadamaradchi East twice on Thursday. SLAF bombers dropped three bombs around 8:50 a.m. and at least four, later around 10:50 a.m. at Kattaikadu. Civilians from a Tsunami shelter took refuge at the bunkers. Fishermen's boats took fire in the attack. SLAF sources in Colombo claimed that the Kfir jets hit a Sea Tiger naval camp in the Vadamaradchi East.
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First time aid in ten days to Jaffna-ICRC

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 August 2006, 05:35 GMT]
A ship sailing under the flag of the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) finally left the port of Colombo Tuesday heading to Jaffna. "The ship contains urgently needed relief to the displaced and resident population of the Jaffna peninsula," said Mr.Vanderhove, ICRC Head of delegation in Colombo, according to a press release issued by the ICRC Wednesday evening.
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Cowardly act, says Vallipunam survivor

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 August 2006, 07:54 GMT]
Paranthan Hindu Mahavidyalam student, Mary Arulappan Juliet, 18, a survivor of the August 14 Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Kfir jet attack which killed 51 girls and four staff at Sencholai children's home campus in Vallipunam in Mullaithivu district, in an interview to TamilNet Tuesday, said the attack was a "cowardly act," and appealed to the International Community to unreservedly condemn the Sri Lanka Government for the attack on school girls.
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Tigers compelled to defend against Sri Lanka’s aggression - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2006, 17:20 GMT]
Responding to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse’s call for the LTTE to declare its commitment to the ceasefire, the head of the LTTE’s Political Wing, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan said that it was the Colombo government which launched a major military offensive in Trincomalee against the Tigers and thereby triggered defensive measures by the Tigers resulting in an escalation of hostilities. "The Norwegian facilitators and the SLMM monitors are witness to the fact that Colombo deliberately chose to launch an offensive in Maavilaru despite the civil dispute being resolved peacefully," Mr. Thamilchelvan said.
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Claymore mine recovered in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2006, 09:29 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police Tuesday morning around 9:30 a.m. recovered a "powerful" Claymore mine fitted to a bicycle used for selling vegetables at Borella in Colombo city. The cycle was abandoned in front of a shop along D.S.Senanayake Mawatte, the police said.
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Sampoor threatens Trinco Harbour - Rajapakse

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2006, 09:20 GMT]
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Monday told the representatives of the Co-Chairs of Tokyo Donors’ Conference for the Sri Lankan Peace Process, that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Sampoor posed a threat to Trincomalee Harbour and justified the Sri Lankan armed forces offensive as "preventing" or "responding" to Tigers. However, informed sources in Colombo said the humanitarian crisis escalated by the Maavilaru offensive, initiated by Colombo and the targeting of civilians in air-strikes and the slaying of NGO workers in Muthur, were discussed at the meeting between the Sri Lankan President and the diplomats representing the Co-Chairs.
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SLMM regroups in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2006, 07:07 GMT]
The Norwegian Foreign Ministry Monday announced that the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) overseeing the Ceasefire between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was regrouping it's Scandinavian monitors in Colombo temporarily. 39 of SLMM's 57 members, from Nordic EU Member States, Sweden, Finland and Denmark, were being called home as the Tigers viewed the EU proscription affecting impartiality required from the CFA monitors from the formal engagement of Ceasefire Monitoring between them and the GoSL.
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Limited SLAF flights to Palaly

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 August 2006, 06:40 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) has resumed limited flights between Ratmalana air base in Colombo and the Palaly airbase on the Jaffna peninsula, military sources in Colombo said. Taking off and landing at Palaly is restricted to late evening or night and the number of trips has been limited to two.
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SLA bans Colombo bound heavy vehicles from east

[TamilNet, Monday, 21 August 2006, 19:40 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has imposed a total ban on heavy vehicles transporting cargo such as fish, and other perishable goods from the districts of Amparai and Batticaloa to Colombo. These vehicles are stopped at Welikanda and Ottamavadi and sent back to Batticaloa and Amparai. The ban has come into effect since Saturday, civil sources said.
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Policemen guarding Karuna group office injured in friendly fire

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 August 2006, 21:05 GMT]
Two policemen guarding the Batticaloa office of paramilitary Karuna group were injured when the gun of a fellow policeman went off accidentally, around 12:15 p.m., Sunday. Both policemen were immediately admitted at the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital.
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"Let civilians flee, allow relief through" - UNHCR

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 August 2006, 13:36 GMT]
"Some 15,000 to 20,000 people are now displaced in the Killinochchi area as a result of repeated [Sri Lankan] artillery shelling and air strikes," the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said this week. Calling on the Colombo government and the Liberation Tigers "to urgently allow aid workers free access to all parts of the island so that vital supplies can reach those cut off by fighting," UNHCR appealed for them "to permit freedom of movement to all civilians displaced by their conflict." Since April UNHCR says 162,000 people have become internally displaced, while 7,439 have become refugees in Tamil Nadu.
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53 Division bears brunt of war

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 August 2006, 12:10 GMT]
Amid continuing heavy fighting in the northern Jaffna peninsula, hundreds of wounded Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers have been brought to hospitals in and around Colombo, with hundreds more awaiting transfer from Anuradhapura, medical sources in the capital said Saturday. While the government officially says 106 soldiers have been killed in a week of fighting, defence sources in Colombo said Friday the bodies of more than 400 soldiers had been brought to the south. They said the majority of the casualties have been borne by the SLA’s elite 53 Division.
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Colombo aggravates humanitarian crisis in NorthEast – NGO forum head

[TamilNet, Saturday, 19 August 2006, 15:32 GMT]
Head of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) forum in Kilinochchi, Mr Ganesapillai, speaking at a press conference Wednesday accused the Sri Lankan government of deliberately blocking food and other supplies to civilians living in Vanni and Jaffna. "The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) is not allowing supply vehicles to pass through the check posts located at the entry points to the Vanni region. Governments agents for Jaffna, Kilinochchi, and Mullaitivu have requested the GOSL to instruct the SLA to open the roads so that all supplies can pass through to civilians in Vanni and Jaffna but the Colombo Government has been withholding issueing such directive," said Mr.Ganesapillai.
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US to provide USD 50 000 water, sanitation assistance to Trinco victims

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 August 2006, 14:42 GMT]
United States Embassy in Colombo in a press release issued on Friday said the US released Rs. 5,000,000 to provide water and sanitation services to immediate assistance to people affected by recent fighting in Trincomalee district. "We are providing this assistance to help the displaced from all communities in Sri Lanka," USAID Mission Director Dr. Carol Becker said. "We repeat that there is no possible military solution to this conflict. We urge both sides to cease hostilities immediately to alleviate a yet larger humanitarian crisis."
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SLAF bombers destroy tsunami-boat yard

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 August 2006, 14:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bombers bombed and destroyed a boat yard, at Nellian in the Vadamaradchi East, around noon, Friday . The boat yard was built in February 2005 under 'Back to Sea' project, a Post Tsunami Rapid Rehabilitation Development Service, to help fishermen affected by 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami. Two workers were wounded in the attack. The boat yard was funded by the Norwegian and Malaysian branches of Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO).
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21 bodies recovered in Kilali

[TamilNet, Friday, 18 August 2006, 13:46 GMT]
Kodikamam Police Friday recovered bodies of 16 men and 5 women in Kilali area where heavy fighting was reported recently. Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) was making arrangements to bury the bodies as the bodies were in highly decomposed state. Chavakacheri Magistrate A. Premsankar was visiting the area Friday with the Police officials.
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TNA briefs Swiss diplomats on NE situation

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 August 2006, 20:04 GMT]
A Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentary delegation Wednesday briefed Mr.Y.V.E.S. Nicoler, First Secretary and Mr.M.R.C.Mark Andre Vunzely, Assistant Secretary of the Swiss Embassy in Colombo about the massive internal displacement of Tamil people in the North East following indiscriminate aerial and artillery bombardment by the Sri Lanka forces. All land and water routes to the LTTE held areas in the Batticaloa district have been closed by the SLA, TNA delegation told Swiss diplomats, sources said.
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Pandemonium at Colombo peace rally

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 August 2006, 12:18 GMT]
There was pandemonium in the peace rally organized by the National Anti-War Front (NAWF) held Thursday evening at Viharamahadevi Park when a group of members of the Sinhala extreme National Bhikku Front (NBF) arrived at the site carrying a banner asking the organizers of the NAWF to proceed to Killinochchi to preach peace.
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