Category: Politics

Jan 24, 2008 (AFP) – A peace panel including ruling party politicians told Sri Lanka’s president to devolve more power to minority Tamils as a first step to resolving the island’s long-running ethnic war, officials said Thursday.The panel, made up of President Mahinda Rajapakse’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party lawmakers and their allies, has been mulling […]

Jan 24, 2008 (AFP) – The bodies of at least 16 people have been found in a mass grave in a government-controlled area of north-central Sri Lanka, police said Thursday.The decomposed bodies were found by local residents in the district of Anuradhapura, 206 kilometres (130 miles) north of Colombo, police said. “Investigations have now begun […]

Jan 23, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka air force jets have bombed a key jungle base in the northern Tamil Tiger stronghold of Kilinochchi Thursday, which the defence ministry said was frequented by the guerrilla leadership. . The defence ministry said the base identified as ‘X-ray’ base was raided at 11.15 am was a ‘hub’ […]

Jan 21, 2008 (AFP) – Fierce fighting erupted in northern Sri Lanka Monday as government forces mounted a fresh push into territory held by Tiger rebels, with the official death toll from the new clashes at more than 50. At least 46 civilians have been killed in rebel attacks since the start of January, according […]

Jan 22, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka poured thousands more security forces into the Sinhalese-dominated south on Tuesday after a string of Tamil rebel attacks left 37 civilians and three police dead, officials said.Suspected rebels shot dead a police officer and two constables on Monday night near the township of Thanamalvila, police officials said.They had […]

Jan 22, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s President Tuesday signalled a shift in the war against the Tamil Tigers, saying he did not want to push his troops into rebel-held territory to defeat the guerrillas.Since the start of this month, the Sri Lanka defence ministry has claimed it has killed 592 rebels against just 26 […]

Jan 21, 2008 (AFP) – Heavy fighting raged across Sri Lanka’s north with the military destroying rebel bunkers and killing at least 29 guerrillas, the defence ministry said Monday.The ministry said 16 rebels were killed in Vavuniya district while 13 were killed in clashes across Mannar district in the northwest on Sunday. The latest fighting […]

Jan 20, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka will hold large-scale civilian and military independence day celebrations in the capital next month despite fears of Tamil rebel attacks, officials said Sunday. Security will be increased further ahead of the 60th Freedom Day on February 4, with 4,100 extra security personnel bolstering thousands of police and soldiers […]

Jan 19, 2008 (AFP) – At least 31 Sri Lankan guerrillas and one soldier were killed in heavy fighting between government forces and Tamil Tiger rebels across the embattled north, the defence ministry said on Saturday. The rebels died in clashes Friday and early Saturday in the Vavuniya, Mannar and Jaffna districts bordering the de […]

Jan 18, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s military on Friday accused Tamil Tiger rebels of murdering nine civilians in the island’s south as violence between the two sides escalated after the formal end of a ceasefire. The army said nine villagers died in separate attacks in the south, suggesting the rebels were again extending their […]

Jan 16, 2008 (AFP) – Nordic peace monitors pulled out of Sri Lanka on Wednesday following the collapse of a ceasefire, and warned that the war between the island’s government and Tamil rebels cannot be won by either side.The Norwegian-led Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission (SLMM) was to shut down its operations late Wednesday, after Colombo […]

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 16, 2008 (AFP) – UN chief Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the “indiscriminate attacks” which left dozens of people dead or injured in southern Sri Lanka and urged the rival sides to strive for a peaceful negotiated settlement. “The Secretary General strongly condemns the indiscriminate attacks in the southeast of Sri Lanka today […]