350 eastern villagers arrested

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 December 1998, 15:09 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) arrested more than 350 civilians in the villages of Kondaiankerny, Kinnaiady, Sungaankerni and Karuvaakerny near Valaichenai, 32 kilometers north of Batticaloa, this morning for interrogation in connection with the activities of the Liberation Tigers in the area.
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ASP succumbs to wounds

[TamilNet, Sunday, 20 December 1998, 12:28 GMT]
G.G.Siriwardena Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), in charge of sector 6 of the Main Supply Route along the Vavuniya-Mankulam trunk road died in a Colombo hospital early this morning, Police sources said.
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PLOTE critical of American action

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 December 1998, 19:48 GMT]
The PLOTE's (People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam) current de facto leader, Manikkadasan, said today that he will organise demonstrations against the US and British missions in Colombo to protest against the American attack on Iraq.
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Shelling victim dies

[TamilNet, Thursday, 17 December 1998, 19:46 GMT]
An elderly civilian, M.Vadivel (74), who was wounded by a shell fired from the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) base at Elephant Pass, towards Muththyankaddu on December 3, died in a Colombo hospital, said sources.
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Food relief for 55,000

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 December 1998, 19:10 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Commissioner General of Essential Services, N.Obadage has ordered that food relief assistance be provided to another 55,000 displaced persons in the Vanni area from December 1, the Vavuniya Government Agent, K.Ganesh said today.
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Batticalo councillor arrested

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 December 1998, 17:20 GMT]
Rasaiah Prabhaharan a member of the Batticaloa Municipal Council was arrested by the Sri Lankan Army and was severely beaten by soldiers in public before being handed over to a special Police investigation unit this morning.
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New SLA commander assumes duties

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 16 December 1998, 16:48 GMT]
"We urgently need twenty thousand more troops to fight the Liberation Tigers" said Sri Lanka's new Army commander, Lt. Gen. Sri Lal Weerasooriya, addressing a press conference this morning soon after assuming duties. He added that meeting this need by having recourse to conscription is not practical (in Sri Lanka).
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Rioting in Panadura

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 15 December 1998, 22:49 GMT]
Two people were wounded when Police opened fire to disperse an angry crowd that surrounded the police station in Panadura, south of Colombo. The crowd gathered after a road accident that occurred at 2.30 p.m. today in which two children were wounded.
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TULF team in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 December 1998, 20:23 GMT]
A four member team of the TULF arrived in Jaffna by a special Sri Lankan military flight today to revive the function of the Jaffna Municipal Council. The team is in Jaffna with a mandate to ratify the Council's budget for 1999 said party sources.
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Censorship has not been relaxed

[TamilNet, Monday, 14 December 1998, 16:05 GMT]
Mr.Ariya Rubasinghe, the Sri Lankan government's director of information and the newly appointed competent authority for censoring war related news denied AFP and Reuters reports on Saturday that the censorship has been lifted by Colombo.
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Army finds explosives on bus

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 December 1998, 22:27 GMT]
Sri Lankan police sources said that five people, including the driver and conductor of a bus, were arrested yesterday after explosives were discovered on board. The bus was on its way to Trincomalee from Kaththankudy in the Batticaloa district.
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South African delegation Visits Jaffna

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 December 1998, 20:57 GMT]
The Bishop of Jaffna, Rev. Philip Thomas Saundranayagam, told the visiting South African parliamentary delegation in Jaffna that the Sri Lankan Government should address to the fundamental problems of the ethnic conflict to achieve lasting peace in the island.
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Australian delegation visits Vavuniya

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 December 1998, 14:47 GMT]
Delegates from the Australian High Commission in Colombo visited Vavuniya on a fact finding mission today. They met the Government Agent of Vavuniya, Mr.K.Ganesh and other officials including the Human Rights Commission in Vavuniya, sources added.
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Government officials return from Vanni

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 December 1998, 14:45 GMT]
The government officials who visited the areas controlled by the Liberation Tigers in the Vanni, on a two day fact finding mission, returned to Colombo yesterday night.
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JVP-era policemen rewarded - paper

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 December 1998, 17:58 GMT]
The Sinhala weekly Ravaya in its latest issue said 65 Sri Lankan Police officers who were involved in the brutal anti-JVP campaign during late 80s have been given promotions and cash rewards.
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"Tigers should retain arms" - TELO

[TamilNet, Friday, 11 December 1998, 17:36 GMT]
Mr. Sivajilingam of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO) said while speaking at a meeting organised in view of the International Humarn Rights Day Trincomalee that he would not ask the Tigers to lay down their arms.
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Three Tigers killed - SLA

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 December 1998, 18:59 GMT]
Three Liberation Tigers were shot dead by the government forces in fresh clashes in the Vanni region security sources said. Soldiers on duty ahead of their defences sniped and killed two tigers north west of Oddusuddan and another tiger member was killed in a sniper fire at Kilinochchi on Wednesday, said the sources.
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South African delegation to visit Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 December 1998, 11:32 GMT]
The multi-party Parliamentary delegation from South Africa which arrived in Colombo on Tuesday November 8 held discussions with the leader of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) Douglas Devananda and Sri Lanka's minister for justice and constitutional affairs Prof.G.L Pieris this morning.
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Colombo councilor shot dead

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 December 1998, 10:56 GMT]
Unidentified gunmen shot dead a councilor of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), Mr. Mohammed Imtiaz, representing the governing People's Alliance (PA), yesterday evening at around 4 p.m.
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News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 09 December 1998, 22:00 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army and Liberation Tigers agree to provide escort to transport exam papers in areas controlled by them, Paachchanoor refugees wait to receive Government's relief food, Court dismisses case against Sri Lankan Minister and Cigarettes prices go up in Jaffna.
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