US demining officials arrive in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 10 August 2004, 13:25 GMT]
Mr. Richard Kidd, Director of Weapons Removal and Abatement, US Department of State, and Colonel Stuart C.Harris, Deputy Director of the same and Ms Cody Taylor, Political head in the US Embassy in Colombo Tuesday morning arrived in Jaffna by a special aircraft and held discussion with Sri Lanka Army officials and civil authorities in Jaffna district.
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Corporal Rajapakse calls off his hunger strike

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 August 2004, 22:54 GMT]
Corporal Rajapakse of the Sri Lanka Army who was sentenced to death in the Krishanthy rape and murder case Monday called off his fast unto death in Jaffna prison on an assurance that he would be sent back to Welikada jail in Colombo within two days' time, prison sources said.
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Usan IDPs picket demanding resettlement

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 August 2004, 22:50 GMT]
Internally displaced families of Usan, a village in Thenmaradchchi division in Jaffna district Monday picketed the Thenamaradchchi divisional secretariat demanding that they should be allowed to resettle in their own houses now being occupied by the Sri Lanka Army in the name of high security zone. The picketing crippled the normal function of the Thenmaradchchi DS office, civil sources said.
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Dhanapala appeals to SLA, LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 August 2004, 08:57 GMT]
Sri Lankan government peace secretariat chairman Dr. Jayantha Dhanapala said Monday that the second largest number cease fire violations occured in Jaffna. He appealed to the Sri Lanka army and the Liberation Tigers to reduce the number of violations by sticking to the provisions of the cease fire agreement. He was speaking to the local press in Jaffna town during a fact finding mission to the northern peninsula Monday.
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Muslim militants attack un-Islamic activities in east

[TamilNet, Monday, 09 August 2004, 06:56 GMT]
Police in Eravur said an Islamic extremist group is suspected to be involved in the murder of a woman who was shot in the early hours of Monday morning around 3 a.m. and bomb attacks on two houses Sunday night. The Islamic group has been issuing leaflets since last week warning Muslims in Batticaloa north not to indulge in 'immoral' and unislamic activities. The woman was shot dead with T-56 assault rifle, Police said. Her daughter was wounded.
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Corporal Rajapakse launches hunger strike in Jaffna prison

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 August 2004, 16:33 GMT]
Corporal Rajapakse of the Sri Lanka Army who was sentenced to death in the Krishanthy rape and murder case launched a hunger strike in Jaffna prison demanding that he should be transfered to Welikada jail. His hunger strike entered third day Sunday, prison sources said.
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US sniffer-dogs in de-mining operation in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 August 2004, 15:01 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army is to deploy six sniffer-dogs from United States of America (USA) in its demining operation in the Jaffna district, an official of the de-mining activities in district secretariat said.
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Slain Batticaloa journalist remembered in Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Sunday, 08 August 2004, 00:12 GMT]
The Listners' Circle of Canadian Tamil Radio based in Toronto Saturday presented three hundred and fifty thousand rupees to the family of slain Batticaloa journalist Mr. Aiyathurai Nadesan at a function held at the Vavuniya Urban Council hall Saturday. Mr. Nadesan, a senior Tamil journalist and the Batticaloa correspondent for the Tamil daily Virakesari and several local and foreign electronic media was shot dead on 31 May by gunmen believed to be associates of renegade LTTE commander 'Karuna'.
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SLA refuses to remove camp in Usan village

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 August 2004, 17:33 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Saturday told Thenmaradchchi Divisional Secretary in Jaffna district that it is not possible for it to remove the forward defense camp from Usan village for security reasons. However the civil groups of the area have told the DS that they would launch a picketing in front of the DS office from Monday forcing the closure of the office, demanding the removal of SLA camp immediately, sources in Jaffna said.
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Gurunagar fishermen in explosives case enlarged on bail

[TamilNet, Saturday, 07 August 2004, 02:09 GMT]
Jaffna Additional Magistrate Ms Srinithi Nandasekaran Friday enlarged all the four fishermen accused for transporting explosives by sea to Jaffna town on surety bail. They were kept in remand since their arrest on the orders of Jaffna Magistrate, legal sources said.
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Jaffna court stopped from inquiring into shooting case

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 23:01 GMT]
The Court of Appeal has instructed the Jaffna Magistrate court to stop all proceedings in a case in which two Sri Lanka Army soldiers have been charged with the attempted murder of an 18 year-old Tamil boy for August 23. The boy was shot at by SLA soldiers when he was selling copies of a Tamil daily ‘Eelanatham’ in Jaffna town in December 2003.
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Passing out parade held for LTTE's special RPG Force units

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 20:24 GMT]
''Liberation Tigers were the first to use Rocket Propelled Grenade launchers (RPG) in the island. Sri Lankan armed forces obtained RPGs after they saw us using the launchers in battles. I created the LTTE's RPG force when I realised that armour was going to be a key component of Op. Jeya Sikurui. Our RPG units were very successful in fighting enemy armour'', said Mr. Velupillai Pirapaharan, leader of the LTTE, addressing the passing out of Special RPG Force units at the Tigers' Military Training College in the Vanni Friday.
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SLN arrests Indian poachers in northern sea

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 19:40 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) Thursday evening took into custody four Indian trawlers poaching in the Sri Lankan northern territorial waters with 21 Indian fishermen and four boatmen and handed them to Kankesanthurai (KKS) Police. The SLN carried out this operation on receipt of information from the members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Jaffna, TamilNet sources in the northern town said.
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Politicians misleading the South on ISGA issue- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 17:20 GMT]
The Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA) proposals put forward by the Liberation Tigers is to address urgent humanitarian needs of the people in the areas of resettlement, rehabilitation and reconstruction and it is very unfortunate that politicians are using this issue to mislead the people in the south, Mr. Thamilchelvan, the head of the LTTE’s political wing told a delegation from southern Sri Lanka.
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Two alleged drug smugglers shot in Mannar

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 17:01 GMT]
Two men suspected to be drug smugglers were shot and wounded in Pesalai on the Mannar island in the early hours of morning Friday, Police said. Two gunmen had shot the alleged smugglers on the beach at Murukankoiladi in Pesalai. In June this year, fisheries societies in Pesalai took away the beaching right of the small settler community in Murukankoiladi, saying that the area was being used for drug smuggling and other nefarious activities.
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English learning room opened in Trinco

[TamilNet, Friday, 06 August 2004, 15:41 GMT]
'Lighthouse Resource Room' providing learning facilities to students in the Trincomalee education zone to enhance their knowledge in English language was opened in Trincomalee Methodist Girls' College Thursday. Mr.G.Gunatilake, Director of Navodhya Education Project in the central government declared open the centre.
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Statue of Liberty reopens despite terror threats

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 04 August 2004, 02:30 GMT]
Statue of Liberty reopened to visitors today for the first time since the 2001 terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center. The reopening ceremony presided by Mayor of NewYork, Michael Bloomberg, lasted an hour . Over $35 million was raised in private funds for improvements that included upgrading security, according to media reports.
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Islamic militants stone pilgrims from Jaffna

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 August 2004, 17:42 GMT]
Four pilgrims returning from Kataragama, a shrine venerated by Tamils and Singhalese, were injured when persons suspected to be Islamic militant youth stoned the buses in which they were traveling to Jaffna at Kalmunai, 40 kilometres south of Batticaloa, Tuesday. A general shut down was observed in the Muslim towns of Batticaloa and Amparai districts Tuesday to mark the killing of Muslims in Kattankudy 14 years ago.
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Jaffna IDPs woes worsen without relief

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 03 August 2004, 03:01 GMT]
Lack of employment opportunities, stalled economic growth, and infrastructure development at a virtual standstill continue to affect the lives of people of Jaffna especially the Internally Displaced People (IDPs). Many families, who have suffered loss of lives and loss of property during the two decades of war, face uphill battle to stay above the poverty line.
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Memorial for VVT massacre opened

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 August 2004, 19:15 GMT]
"Our leadership and our people have demonstrated that it will not be possible by any power to suppress our freedom struggle", said Mr C.Ilamparithi, Jaffna district Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) political head speaking at the Valvettithurai massacre memorial meeting held Monday evening.
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