Armed men abduct two youths in Kalmunai

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 February 2007, 10:50 GMT]
Armed men on motor cycles, alleged to be members of Karuna paramilitary group, abducted two youths at gun-point at Temple road in Kalmunai in Amparai district Tuesday around 11:30 p.m.
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Jaffna journalists fearful amid threats, killings

[TamilNet, Thursday, 15 February 2007, 02:27 GMT]
The campaign of intimidation backed up by deadly violence has compelled Sri Lankan journalists of all ethnicities to flee Sri Lanka. But unlike their southern colleagues, journalists in the Jaffna have no easy escape and media institutions in the northern peninsula are appealing for international support in the face of threats by Army-backed paramilitaries.
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Priest killed in Santhiveli

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 February 2007, 08:08 GMT]
A Hindu priest who had been forcefully taken to Vaharai from Santhiveli by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) to garland the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse during his visit to Vaharai last Saturday, was shot and killed by armed men who are allegedly attached to SLA military intelligence, Wednesday around 8:15 p.m. near his house a few meters away from the SLA camp at Santhiveli, 36 km south of Vaharai.
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Home Guard trooper killed in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 06 February 2007, 05:40 GMT]
A Sri Lanka Home Guard trooper was killed in an attack on a guardpost at Kurumankadu in Vavuniya, around 8:35 p.m., Monday, police in the northern town said.
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Eastern university reopens with VC still held captive

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 January 2007, 21:05 GMT]
Even though Prof.S.Raveendranath, former Vice Chancellor(VC) of Batticaloa Eastern University abducted in Dec 15 has not been released, the university reopened on Monday 29 after being closed for more than a month, and lectures resumed in all faculties, campus officials said. University Senate recently made the decision to reopen the campus. M.Pathmananathan, acting Vice Chancellor appealed to all parties to extend their co-operation for the smooth functioning of the university activities.
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TRO staffers disappearance reaches one-year anniversary

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 January 2007, 01:07 GMT]
Seven staffers of Tamils Rehabilitation Organization (TRO), an NGO registered with the Government of Sri Lanka, were abducted on 29th and 30th January 2006, by armed paramilitiaries inside Sri Lanka Army (SLA) controlled area in Polannaruwa. In a press release issued from Colombo offices, the TRO said: "To date the Sri Lanka Police have yet to conduct any meaningful investigation or inquiry into these disappearances. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka investigated this case and made a report to its head that has never been released."


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Youth seeks safety at Jaffna Police station

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 January 2007, 16:47 GMT]
A youth from Kokuvil west in Jaffna surrendered at the Jaffna police station Monday fearing danger to his life by unknown armed men. The police produced the youth Monday before Jaffna district magistrate Mr. R. T. Wicknarajah who ordered the youth to be placed in Jaffna prison under the protective custody of the courts until February 9, legal sources in Jaffna said.
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International Community's flawed approach assists Colombo- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 January 2007, 15:07 GMT]
Liberation Tigers Political Head S. P. Thamilchelvan, in an Interview to TamilNet Sunday, said the passive stance adopted by the International Community, which he characterized as “unconstructive engagement,” is encouraging Colombo to pursue its power-centric politics and aggressive military agenda. The International Community, while making statements that a military solution is not possible, is either unable to, or unwilling to, exert its formidable muscle to force Colombo out of the current military path, despite the patience shown by the Tigers, he said.


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2 young men abducted, killed in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 January 2007, 22:08 GMT]
Eravur Police recovered bullet-riddled bodies of two Tamil young men dumped in the bushes in Savukkady, Thalavai in Batticaloa district around 4:00 p.m. Tuesday.
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Paramilitaries abduct three civilians in East

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 January 2007, 16:59 GMT]
Three civilians were abducted by Karuna group paramilitary personnel driving in white vans in two separate incidents in Kaluwanchikudy in Batticaloa district, and in Thirukovil area in Ampara district.
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Paramilitary abducts IDP boys as more flee Vaharai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 January 2007, 15:44 GMT]
Two boys, displaced from Vaharai to Kannankiramam village in Valaichenai, were abducted by armed paramilitary men at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. On Thursday, 3 youths belonging to IDP families were abducted by the paramilitary. Residents fear increased abductions as 4700 persons from Vaharai region crossed over the entry point at Kajuwatte, 5 km north of Mankerni, Friday and Saturday, and around 1200 civilians reached Singapura area through Kattumurivu. Abductions of underage youth, taking place almost on a daily basis, are no longer complained to Police following threats from paramilitary.
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STF commandos leave behind dead paramilitary - Seeralan

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 January 2007, 10:35 GMT]
An elite commando unit of the Special Task Force personnel who penetrated into Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam controlled territory at 39th Colony in Vellavely, 3 km north of Batticaloa Amparai district border, were repulsed in a counter-attack by the Tigers Tuesday evening. The STF commandos, during their retreat, left behind a dead body of a paramilitary cadre with his arms and ammunition, said S. Seeralan, LTTE's Batticaloa district deputy political head.
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Sivaram murder trial before Sinhala speaking Jury

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 January 2007, 16:38 GMT]
The Colombo High Court Tuesday fixed the inquiry into the murder of political analyst and a senior editor of TamilNet, Sivaram Dharmeratnam, before a Sinhalese speaking Jury. Judge W.A.D.Ratnayake allowed the application made by the sole suspect, an alleged member of an ex-militant turned paramilitary, that he should be tried before a Sinhala speaking jury, legal sources said.
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SLA commander transfers paramilitary personnel in Arayampathy

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 January 2007, 15:57 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army 23-3 Brigade Commander Colonel Subasinghe, in an attempt to calm down the objections from the Muslims who oppose the armed passage of Karuna paramilitary personnel via Kathankudy Muslim town, after the recent violence in Arayampathy Kathankudy border, has transferred a key paramilitary operative and fellow personnel to the camps elsewhere. New paramilitary personnel have been posted the house attached to the STF camp in Arayampathy, according to Muslim representatives in Kaththankudy.
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Sri Lanka steps up offensive on Vaharai

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 January 2007, 08:35 GMT]
Heavy casualties were reported in fresh fighting as Sri Lankan armed forces launched a three pronged ground offensive towards Panichchankerni, south of Vaharai, towards Eachilampattu and Uppooral in the north. 12 Tiger fighters were killed and 7 wounded according to LTTE Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan who also claimed more than 40 SLA troopers were killed. Meanwhile Sri Lankan military sources in Colombo claiming to have inflicted a heavy casualty, more than 30, on the Tigers said 4 Sri Lankan troopers were killed, inclduing an officer and 20 wounded.
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Halo Trust employee feared abducted in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 January 2007, 11:11 GMT]
The driver of 'Halo Trust,' a humanitarian de-mining international non-governmental organization in Jaffna peninsula, has been missing since Tuseday 7:30 a.m after he left his house at Kellner Road in Nallur and reported for work at Halo Trust office, sources in Jaffna said. Nine employees from 'Halo Trust' have been either killed or abducted and disappeared in Jaffna Peninsula and the missing driver is the tenth victim.
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Mosque leaders urge Muslim Tamil unity, blame paramilitary for violence

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 January 2007, 08:34 GMT]
Representatives of the Federation of Mosques in Kathankudy, Saturday, in a bid to calm down tension between communities in the border settlements between Kathankudy Muslim and Arayampathy Tamil areas, urged the civilians not to fall prey to the forces seeking to damage Muslim Tamil harmony, after Karuna paramilitary personnel attached to the Sri Lankan counter-insurgency Special Task Force (STF) camp in Arayampathy had attacked Muslim travellers Friday, causing the victims to seek refuge in Kathankudy Mosque. Paramilitary violence and threats posed by armed "Jihad" men against Tamils have ceased and normalcy was reported in the area Sunday.
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Media watchdog condemns paramilitary ban on papers

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 January 2007, 11:52 GMT]
Free Media Movement, a Colombo based media watchdog, Friday said it noted with deep concern the alleged ban imposed by the Karuna paramilitary group on the sale of Colombo Tamil dailies Virakesari, Thinakkural and Sudar Oli in the East. The paramilitary group, operated by the Sri Lanka Army, had banned the sale of the Tamil papers, except the EPDP paramilitary owned Thinamurasu and the Sri Lanka Government owned Thinakaran in Sri Lanka Army controlled areas of Batticaloa district. The group has issued death threats to news agents in Trincomalee in an attempt to block the distribution of independent Tamil papers in the district.
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Paramilitary office attacked in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 18:58 GMT]
Armed men launched an attack on the office of paramilitary Karuna Group, located at Kallady, inside the High Security area of Sri Lanka Army at 11:20 p.m. Wednesday. Reports said one paramilitary personnel was killed and eight others injured. The attack lasted for more than an hour damaging the office. Kallady is located 3 km south of Batticaloa town.
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Karuna group "bans" Tamil dailies in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 14:55 GMT]
Karuna paramilitary group imposed a "ban" to sell Thinakural, Sudaroli and other newspapers in Trincomalee district, the proprietors of the news papers said. The News agents were summoned by the Karuna group in Trincomalee Tuesday and threatened they would be shot to death if they fail to comply, according to sources.
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