Three SLA troopers seriously injured in claymore attack in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 December 2006, 09:29 GMT]
Unidentified persons triggered a claymore device Friday around 7:50 a.m at Asikulam area in Vavniya, seriously injuring 3 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers who were on their way to fetch water from a well close to the Asikulam SLA camp, Vavuniya police said. The injured troopers were rushed to Vavuniya military hospital.


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SLA denies transport to critical Vaharai patients

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 December 2006, 00:07 GMT]
K. Thurairatnasingham, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian for Trincomalee district said Thursday that four civilians including two children are fighting for their lives in Vaharai hospital as the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) at Mankerny camp on the A15 route refuses to allow the patients to be transported to Batticaola Teaching Hospital for intensive treatment. His appeals to the Defence Ministry officials and Batticaloa SLA high commands had not been responded favourably, the MP added.


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Payilvan dies, sectarian violence flares up in Kattankudy

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 22:50 GMT]
Sectarian violence between orthodox Muslims against the Islamic sect, Sufi, that preaches pantheism, resurfaced in Muslim town of Kattankudy in Batticaloa district Thursday following the death of M. S. Abdul Payilvan, one of the leaders of Sufi sect and the President of All Island Tharikathul Mufliheen, and his burial in Kattankudy. The orthodox Muslims observed a Hartal demanding the removal of the body from the burial grounds. Three houses belonging to the followers of Payilvan were set ablaze on Thursday night, Police sources said.
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UN: Karuna denies child recruitment, commits to collaborate with UNICEF

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 17:45 GMT]
Vinyagamoorthy Muralitharan (Karuna), who leads the paramilitary Karuna Group operated by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), has contacted the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, on Monday, regarding the listing of his group to the UN Security Council, according to a press release issued by the UN office in Colombo. The move, comes following a report by Allan Rock, the Special Advisor to the UN Special Representative, who accused the Sri Lankan military for recruiting children to the ranks of the paramilitary group, in November when he concluded a 10-day mission to Sri Lanka. Tamil Tigers in October outlawed the recruitment of under-17s.
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One Tamil youth dead, another injured in SLN shooting in Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 14:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) cadres shot dead a Tamil youth and seriously injured another, Thursday around 8:30 a.m on the Crow Island beach in Modara police division in Colombo. The SLN allege that when its cadres approached the youths to inquire about their suspicious movement on the beach, the youths attemted to pull their guns resulting in the shooting in self defence by the SLN marines, Modara police said.
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13 Jaffna civilians abducted after reinstatement of PTA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 12:07 GMT]
Thirteen civilians, including a former Halo Trust personnel, in Jaffna district were abducted Wednesday night after the Government of Sri Lanka reinstated the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) Wednesday. Nine civilians from Kalviyankadu, Kadaipirai, Dutch road areas in Valigamam east were abducted Wednesday night by armed men alleged to be Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and police, residents in these areas said. The same night four civilians in Valigamam north were abducted by SLA, according to complaints made by the relatives of the abducted, at the Jaffna office of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC).
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Mahinda tells Sri Lankans: "choose your side in the war"

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 11:53 GMT]
Announcing tough new powers for the Sri Lankan military and the police, SL President Mahinda Rajapakse last issued a warning for citizens: “I ask this of all political parties, all media, and all people’s organizations,” he said Wednesday in a countrywide television broadcast asking the viewers to choose their side in the war between "terrorism" and "democracy" in a 'you're either with us, or against us,' patterned speech.
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LTTE denies shelling school, heavy fighting north of Vaharai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 11:48 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Thursday morning launched artillery attacks towards Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Verugal, 14 km northwest of Vaharai and 27 km southeast of SLA captured Sampoor. Meanwhile, SLA troops that moved 5 km inside LTTE territory into Kattumurivu, southwest of Vaharai, have stationed in a school, following stiff LTTE resistance.
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Students, teachers wounded in artillery fire in Kallar

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 11:02 GMT]
11 students and two teachers were wounded when artillery shells hit Somadevi Sinhala School around 11:30 a.m. Thursday. Sri Lankan military sources said the Tigers were targeting the Mahindapura SLA camp with artillery fire, but the shells had missed the target. Three soldiers were wounded, an hour later when the shells hit the SLA camp, according to the SLA.
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Two SLA troopers killed in claymore attack, a civilian shot dead in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 10:49 GMT]
Unidentified persons triggered a claymore device Wednesday around 7:45 p.m on the Chettikulam-Madavadchi road in Vavuniya killing two Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers on the spot and in a separate incident on the same night around 7:30 p.m, unidentified armed men shot dead a civilian at Sasthrikoolankulam in Vavuniya, the police in Vavuniya said.


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Imperiled livelihood

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 December 2006, 02:46 GMT]
Jaffna's 'fisheries belt' which accounted for 37 percent of the island’s total catch two decades ago, today lies inside the Sri Lanka Army’s (SLA's) largest high security zone in the northeast. The peninsula's sea coasts, including the southern coastal waters of Jaffna lagoon, except Jaffna Islets, remain off-limits for fishing under a Sri Lanka Military enforced ban. In this scenario, the Sunday announcement by SLA that fishing ban in Vadamarachchy North is relaxed for fishing within 50 meters from the shore, is unlikely to lend succor to the fisher families struggling in dire poverty without a means of livelihood.
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Boycott against Jaffna busstand relocation called off

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 19:57 GMT]
The three day boycott by the employees of the Jaffna Transport Board (CTB) protesting against the relocation of the Jaffna Central Bus Terminal to Pannai Bridge area by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) ended Wednesday after an agreement was reached between the SLA and the CTB officials in talks held during the last three days, CTB officials said.
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Four civilians killed in claymore blast in Jaffna town

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 12:24 GMT]
Unidentified assailants triggered a claymore device attached to a motor cycle parked near the Pannai Bridge in Jaffna targeting a Sri Lanka Army (SLA) vehicle Wednesday around 1:30 p.m killing two civilians on the spot and seriously injuring four others. Two of the injured succumbed to injuries at the Jaffna Teaching hospital, sources in Jaffna said. The blast overturned the SLA vehicle, injuring several soldiers, SLA sources said.
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Plantation workers continue agitation for wage increase

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 11:55 GMT]
Hill country workers as part of their on going agitation for reasonable increase in daily wages began striking since Tuesday morning . Thousands of workers from tea estates in Norwood, Puliyawatte, Dickoya, Bogawantalawa, Saami Malai, Maskeliya, Norton Bridge, Wattawala,Kottagala, and Talawakelle, belonging to various trade unions, setting aside policy differences, joined hands to voice their protest, paralyzing tea production in the island
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Vavuniya identification parade postponed

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 02:22 GMT]
Manickavasagar Ilancheliyan, Vavuniya District Magistrate, postponed the identification parade related to the killing of five students of Thandikulam School of Agriculture originally scheduled to be held Tuesday, to December 19, legal sources in Vavuniya said.
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More youths surrender to Rights Group in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 01:21 GMT]
The number of youths surrendering to the Human Rights Commission (HRC), Jaffna branch out of fear being abducted and killed by the Sri Lankan Forces, are increasing, human rights activists in Jaffna Peninsula said Tuesday.
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2 SLA troopers, 1 policeman injured in Chenkalady mortar attack

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 December 2006, 00:18 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Batticaloa said two of its troopers including a woman, and a policeman were injured in a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) mortar attack launched Tuesday from 3:45 p.m until 4:15 p.m on its sentry post at the Black Bridge on the Chenkalady-Badula road leading into LTTE held region. Two mortar shells fell and exploded near the sentry post injuring the victims, the source added.
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Tiger Lieutenant Colonel, SLA troopers killed in Vaharai battle

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 December 2006, 16:18 GMT]
Heavy fighting was reported between Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers at Kattumurivu for the second day and the SLA attempt to advance further into LTTE territory was halted following heavy casualties, said LTTE's Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan. Lt. Col. Viduthalai, military coordinator of Vaharai kottam, died in the battle Tuesday. Ilanthirayan claimed that more than 30 SLA troopers were killed in a fierce battle.
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One Vaharai IDP dead, another critical

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 December 2006, 14:00 GMT]
Deaths, caused by the acute shortage of medicine at Vaharai hospital and the continuing Sri Lanka Army (SLA) heavy rocket and artilery fire from Mankerny, Kadjuwathe and Kattumurivu camps on Vaharai in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) held territory, are on the increase, according to sources in Vaharai.
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Four partly burnt bodies recovered in Habarana

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 December 2006, 12:49 GMT]
Kekirawa police recovered four dead bodies partially burnt in a paddy filed at Ganewella area in Kekirawa police division in Habarana Tuesday around 5:00 a.m. The bodies have been transferred to Polanaruwa hospital.
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