11 Tamil civilians arrested in Gampaha

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 17:24 GMT]
The Sri Lankan police assisted by home guards began a dusk to dawn cordon and search operation in Gampaha town on Wednesday, concluding the operation on Thursday arresting 37 persons. Of them eleven were Tamils working in commercial establishments and other institutions. Majority of them were from of north, east and upcountry. About ten thousand persons were subjected to interrogation and about one thousand vehicles were also searched during the operation, civil sources said.
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British Tamils demonstrate at Parliament Square

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 16:48 GMT]
Thousands of British Tamils demonstrated at the Parliament Square in London on Wednesday between 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., urging the British Parliament to demand the Government of Sri Lanka to stop the genocide unleashed on Eezham Tamils. The Diaspora Tamils also carried banners seeking the British Parliament to recognise Tamils' right to self-determination in their homeland. The gathering also expressed gratitude to the people of Tamil Nadu for their solidarity with Eezham Tamils.
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JHU opposes TNA participation in APRC

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 15:18 GMT]
The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), all Buddhist monks' party Thursday said inviting Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to the All Party Representatives Committee (APRC) deliberation is tantamount to allowing the LTTE to participate. Hence JHU severely opposes the invitation extended to TNA by APRC Chairman Professor Tissa Vitharane, said Narendra Gunatilake, JHU spokesman on international affairs at a press briefing held in Colombo.
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White van armed men abduct Tamil NGO staffer in Serunuwara

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 15:15 GMT]
A 25-year-old Tamil woman worker of a non-government organization based in Trincomalee district was abducted Wednesday evening by armed persons who arrived in a white van near Serunuwara, south of the Trincomalee district. The victim was on her way to Moothoor division when the abduction took place, according to complaints lodged with the police Thursday.
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Tamil youth abducted in Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 15:12 GMT]
A 28-year-old Tamil youth was abducted in Vaazhaiththoaddam in Colombo district Wednesday evening by armed members of a gang clad in military uniform, according to complaints with the Colombo police Thursday.
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75% of confiscated funds belong to INGOs, says TRO

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 12:03 GMT]
Responding to the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) press release that the State has confiscated Rs. 71m from Tamil Rehabilitation Organization’s (TRO’s) bank account, TRO reiterated its denial of allegations that funds were “mainly used for terrorist activies,” and pointed out that the “GoSL has never produced any proof of these allegations in a court of law and has not brought any criminal charges against TRO,” and that Colombo has consistently denied TRO opportunity to defend against the allegations in the courts of law.
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Rajapaksa's three-pronged strategy

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 01:47 GMT]
While celebrating its military achievements, Colombo is secretly prodded on an alternative game. Mahinda Rajapaksa is upto a three-pronged strategy now: limiting LTTE's jurisdiction with a low-profiled war, coercing Tamil political circles for his plans and conducting snap polls. A superficial solution is on the cards through Mahinda-Manmohan protocol. Unity and vigilance of Tamil Nadu are the need of the hour for countering any sabotage of the national cause of Eezham Tamils, writes TamilNet's Special Correspondent in a Situation Report.
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Distinguished Tamil film artist M.N. Nambiar passes away

[TamilNet, Thursday, 20 November 2008, 00:02 GMT]
M.N. Nambiar, the celebrated ‘villain’ of the silver screen passed away on Wednesday in Chennai at the age of 90. Started acting in films since 1935, his distinguished career in Tamil cinema and lately in TV serials spanned for nearly 7 decades. He was shot to limelight in the role of the villainous royal preceptor ‘Gurusamy’ in Mandrikumari of 1950, which was the first for MGR in the role of hero and first for Kalaignar Karunanidhi, the present Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu as the screenwriter.
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TNA parliamentarians grilled by CID

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 November 2008, 22:15 GMT]
Within the last few days, three Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians, S. Jeyanandamoorthy, P. Ariyanethran and S. Kajendran, were summoned by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Sri Lanka Police for investigation after getting stipulated permission from the Speaker of the Parliament. The focus of the questioning was their speeches viewed as a breach of the 6th Amendment of the Sri Lankan constitution, which prohibits any opinion expressed inside or outside of the island, in favour of secession in Sri Lanka
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ICJ has jurisdiction to hear Genocide claims against Serbia

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 November 2008, 15:52 GMT]
Croatia won the right Tuesday to sue Serbia for genocide after the United Nations' highest court, the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, based in Hague Netherlands, ruled it has the legal power to decide the case, AP reported. Describing the ruling as "symbolical and just," Croatian President, Stipe Mesic, said the decision came on the 17th anniversary of the fall of the city of Vukovar, where at least 1,500 Croats were killed and thousands expelled by rebel Serbs.
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SLN arrests 17 Tamil Nadu fishermen in Analaitheevu

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 November 2008, 15:42 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) arrested 17 Tamil Nadu fishermen in 5 boats Monday night for allegedly trespassing into Sri Lankan waters in the islet of Analaitheevu. Meanwhile, 17 civilians from Paranthan area fleeing from Sri Lanka Army (SLA) artillery attacks and Sri Lanka Air force (SLAF) reached the shore in Thenmaraadchi crossing Jafffna lagoon Monday were arrested by the Sri Lankan troops in the coastal sentry points.
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20 civilians arrested in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 November 2008, 14:34 GMT]
Twenty Tamil civilians were arrested in a cordon and search operation conducted by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Sri Lanka Police located in Eechchantheevu area in Vavu'natheevu police division in Batticaloa district on Tuesday from early morning around 5:30 a.m. The arrested are being held in the Vavu'natheevu police station
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74 Tamil political prisoners transferred to Magazine, jailed with criminal offenders

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 19 November 2008, 13:56 GMT]
Prison authorities of Colombo Remand Prison (CRP) Tuesday evening suddenly transferred 74 Tamil political prisoners, including senior journalist J.S.Tissanayagam to Colombo Magazine Prison, placing them with hardcore criminal prisoners from South, according to initial messages passed by the prisoners to their relatives. The political prisoners, who have been urging the authorities to transfer them to remand prisons in Northern and Eastern provinces, in their message said they have been intimidated by the move as they are reminded of the massacre of more than 50 Tamil political prisoners inside the nearby Welikada prison in July 1983 by prison guards and fellow Sinhala prisoners.
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Colombo confiscates Tamil rehabilitation funds

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 23:51 GMT]
Around 71 million Rupees in the accounts of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) in the Sri Lankan banks have been confiscated by the Sri Lankan Government, according to a press release by the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka on Tuesday. The move is widely seen as an act of 'structural genocide' against Eezham Tamils, preventing Tamils looking after their own rehabilitation, discouraging individual, organisational and international contribution to Tamil rehabilitation and also as a response of Colombo to the rehabilitation funds being raised by the Government of Tamil Nadu, said a TRO activist in Norway.
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Grenade attack on Tamil surgeon in Akkaraippattu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 18:57 GMT]
Unidentified armed men lobbed a grenade on a dental clinic run by a Tamil medical officer in Akkaraippattu police division in Ampaa'rai district Monday night around 9:00 p.m. The Dental Surgeon has been identified as Christopher Daniel and his clinic is located along Ismail Road in Akkaraippattu. The explosion did not cause any damage to the surgeon or to his clinic building.
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25 Tamil civilians arrested in Thirukkoayil

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 18:42 GMT]
Twenty five Tamil civilians between the ages 16 to 30 were arrested in a cordon and search operation conducted by the Special Task Force (STF) of the Police stationed in kaagnchirangkudaa camp for about an hour on Monday night from 7:00 p.m. in Vinayakapuram area in Thirukkoayil police division in Ampaarai district.
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27 Tamil civilians arrested in Gampaha

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 16:09 GMT]
Twenty seven Tamil civilians, including upcountry and north and east residents, majority of them employed in business establishments and other institutions, were taken into custody in a cordon and search operation conducted by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the police from dusk of Monday dawn on Tuesday in the Gampaha town, according to police sources. The arrested are being held in the Gampaha police station for further inquiry as they failed to prove their identity and provide satisfactory reason for their stay in the location, police said.
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White van armed men abduct Tamil youth in Colombo

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 14:36 GMT]
A 23-year-old Tamil youth, a resident of Jaffna, was abducted Monday night along Peoples Park in Colombo by a gang of six men clad in army uniform, according to a complaint lodged with the police by his relatives. The armed men arrived in a white van and forced the youth into the van before driving away.
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36 SLA killed, 90 wounded in Mukamaalai Front - LTTE

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 11:38 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) in Jaffna put up stiff resistance against the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) that attempted to advance across Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) Forward Defence Line four times between Monday noon till Tuesday 10:00 a.m. Heavy clashes erupted on multiple locations along the FDL on each attempt, the Tigers said. At least 36 SLA soldiers were killed and 90 wounded, the Tigers said. Meanwhile sources in Jaffna said Jaffna Palaali Road remained closed for public traffic several times within the last four days to transport the SLA casualties to Palaali military hospital.
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SLA Claymore attack kills 3 Tamil civilians in Vanni

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 November 2008, 11:01 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Deep Penetration Unit triggered a Claymore mine targeting a civilian vehicle killing a 12-year-old boy, his 53-year-old father and a 34-year-old man on the spot at Channasip-Paranthan, 5 km north of Pu'liyangku'lam on Pu'liyangku'lam Nedungkea'ni Road Tuesday morning around 8:45, Tamileelam Police said. The mother and the driver of the vehicle were seriously wounded and rushed to Mullaiththeevu hospital. The vehicle was returning to Vavuniyaa after delivering weekly newspapers to Vanni.
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