Trond Furuhovde passes away

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 May 2006, 05:40 GMT]
Retired Major-General of Norwegian army and the first chief of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), Trond Furuhovde, has passed away at 67, in Norway on Wednesday. Maj. Gen. Furuhovde made an outstanding contribution to the establishment of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) and gave leadership to the monitoring mission through its crucial first year of operations.
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Youth shot by Karuna group gunmen dies

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 May 2006, 01:53 GMT]
Seenithamby Yogeswaran of Panichankerny, shot by Karuna group gunmen Tuesday around 10.30 a.m near Kayankerny Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camp, succumbed to bullet wounds Tuesday night at Colombo hospital, medical sources said. Yogeswaran was transferred from Batticaloa hospital to Colombo Hospital Tuesday, his relatives said.
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Manthuvil families protest in front of SLA Varani base

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 May 2006, 09:25 GMT]
Hundreds of families from Manthuvil region gathered in front of the Sri Lanka Army 52-4 Brigade Head Quarters located on the Point Pedro - Kodikamam road in Varani Wednesday morning, protesting against the disappearance and alleged SLA killing of eight youths from their area on Saturday the 7th May, said sources from Point Pedro.
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Talks on conscription meaningless while children die in military attack-LTTE

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 May 2006, 09:13 GMT]
Trincomalee District Political Secretariat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said in a statement released Tuesday from Sampoor that LTTE is not prepared to hold talks on the child recruitment issue with the so-called child welfare organizations that are not showing any interest in providing security for children from the attack by the Sri Lankan government troops, sources said.
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Protest condemning SLA atrocities cripples Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 May 2006, 02:28 GMT]
All government institutions, shops, schools and other institutions remained closed in the Jaffna peninsula Tuesday in response to the call made by the Jaffna district Consortium of public organisations to stage a mass 'Refrain from Duty' protest condemning the atrocities of Sri Lanka government (GoSL) and its armed forces and paramilitaries in the form of abductions, assassinations of innocent civilians and harassment's and restrictions in the Jaffna peninsula, said sources from Jaffna.
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Student travelling abroad reported missing in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 19:18 GMT]
A Jaffna student, on his way abroad, was reported missing together with his driver and the vehicle after reaching Omanthai Sri Lanka Army (SLA) checkpost on 06th May. The disappearance has taken place around 2:30 p.m., parents of the missing persons has complained to the authorities and Human Rights bodies in Vavuniya.
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Gunmen abduct Pt.Pedro traders

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 18:50 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen who came in a white Hiace van abducted two traders in Pt.Pedro town, in Sri Lanka Army's (SLA) high security zone, in the Vadamaradchi sector of the Jaffna peninsula, around 5.30 p.m., Tuesday, sources in Jaffna said.
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Rights group finds blood stains, empty shells at crime site

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 17:37 GMT]
A special investigating team of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC) in Jaffna led by Mr. M. Remedias, Attorney-at-law and Legal Advisor, and Coordinator Mr. Rohitha Piriyadarshana, inspected Tuesday around 11.30 a.m the Manthuvil site where the bodies of eight civilians allegedly killed by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) were said to be lying, after officially visiting Kodikamam police, said residents of Manthuvil East in Thenmaradchy.
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Two Forestry workers found dead in Mankulam jungle

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 11:14 GMT]
Two civilian employees of Forestry Resources Protection unit attached to the civil administration in Vanni, were found shot dead in Panikkankulam jungle, 5 km west of A9 road northwest of Mankulam Tuesday. The employees who went to the jungle Tuesday, 02 May, were reported missing on 05 May, Tamileelam Police official of Mankulam Thunukkai area, Mr. Vijayakumar said. The decomposed bodies had bullet wounds. The police found four empty cases from the location.
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SLA destroys Nadeswara College fences

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 10:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers destroyed the wire fences constructed around the temporary building functioning as Nadeswara College, had entered the premises Sunday night and threatened the watcher to abstain from night time duties, civil sources in Jaffna said. The building is located in front of Tellipalai Durga Amman Temple and 75m from SLA camp.
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Relatives await abducted youth’s release

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 09 May 2006, 06:51 GMT]
Kirubairatnam Suthahiri 22, a building contractor in Kinnaiady in the Valaichenai police division was abducted along with his motorbike by unidentified gunmen on 28th April 2006 around 7 p.m. near the Mankerny Sri Lanka Army (SLA) check point while returning from Pannichankerny. Although abductors have indicated through third party that they will release Sutharhiri, the victim has not been released yet, sources said.
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Large SLA troop movements towards Nagarkovil FDL

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 12:24 GMT]
Hundreds of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops are moving towards Forward Defense Lines (FDLs) in Nagarkovil in Vadamaradchy east, and surrounding villages of Manatkaadu and Kudathanai, in vehicle convoys from Palaly Military base continuously from 12.00 midnight till 12 noon Monday, at nearly 15 minute interval, sources from Jaffna said.
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No bodies found- SLMM

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 10:44 GMT]
Members of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Monday morning after visiting the site where the bodies were said to be lying, said that they could not locate any bodies. Hundreds of local residents are still gathered at the Seerani Kelakkai temple in Manthuvil East to find out the fate of eight youths who disappeared Sunday morning, sources said.
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Colombo, LTTE friction intensifies after Thenmaradchy killings

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 10:09 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP) in a message forwarded to the Liberation Tigers has informed that the A9 Road will be open "as soon as LTTE refrains the general public of Jaffna from agitating," indicating increasingly confrontational position being taken by the Government of Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the killings in Thenmaradchy, sources in Kilinochchi said. of eight civilians allegedly by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA).
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Elilan warns of retaliatory attack

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 08:46 GMT]
"We would be forced to attack the Kaddaiparichchan camp of the Sri Lanka Army if the paramilitaries and government troops continue their attack on LTTE forward defense line in Kaddaiparichchan," Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Monday informed the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in the east port town, LTTE sources in Sampoor said.
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SLMM yet to inspect the crime site, Jaffna TNA MP complains

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 06:53 GMT]
"Almost 30 hours have passed since a crime against humanity has taken place at a temple site. The truce monitors from the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission in Jaffna are yet to visit the crime site or approach the area where the bodies are said to be found," accused S. Gajendran, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP for Jaffna district. The SLMM officials have explained that the delay was caused due to the lack of resources. There was no translator or driver available for the SLMM to visit the sites, according to the Director of the Peace Secretariat of the Liberation Tigers, Mr. S. Puleedevan, who said the SLMM delay was "too late."
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Military curfew renders Jaffna streets bare

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 06:06 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army imposed curfew has rendered Jaffna a dead city with the hospital staff remaining inside the hospital and a few civilians caught unaware of the curfew going out into the Jaffna streets Monday early morning are detained at SLA check points. Fishermen, who went to sea before the curfew, returning Monday dawn from their night's fishing in the waters around the Jaffna peninsula, were being subjected to harassment by the SLA troopers for "disobeying" the curfew imposed.
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Colombo shuts down entry points in Mannar

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 04:57 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army Monday morning closed down Uyilankulam and Madhu entry points to the Liberation Tigers controlled territory in the Mannar district.
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SLA closes A9 highway to Vanni, Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 May 2006, 03:25 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers have closed the A9 entrypoints at Omanthai Monday morning. Muhamalai entry point also remained closed as SLA has imposed a curfew after the bodies of eight civilians killed at Seerani Amman temple in Kelakkai in Thenmaradchi in Jaffna, were reportedly found in Kapputhu, Vadamaradchi. Villagers allege that the SLA was attempting to cover up the killings allegedly carried out by their soldiers at the temple observing Kumbabishekam festival in Manthuvil East, around 7 km northeast of Chavakachcheri.
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Jaffna Bishop appeals for urgent intervention of International Community

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 May 2006, 19:12 GMT]
"Tamil people are gripped with fear and insecurity due to the alarming escalation in Killings and abductions in NorthEast, including Jaffna, and in the South. People are scared of a major war exploding at any time. I appeal to the International Community to urgently intervene to pressure the parties involved to reduce the threat of war. In particular, the warring parties should be pressured to a implement the Cease Fire Agreement (CFA) as agreed by both parties in Geneva," said Bishop of Jaffna, Rev. Fr Thomas Soundaranayagam, speaking to press in Colombo, Sunday.
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