Category: Defense

GENEVA, May 27, 2009 (AFP) – The UN Human Rights Council ended a special session on Sri Lanka’s conflict on Wednesday with diplomats failing to bridge an Asian-Western divide over whether to probe alleged abuses.“There is no reason for a probe.These are political statements made by various people. I don’t think we should get excited […]

May 24, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers on Sunday admitted for the first time that their leader was killed by government forces a week ago as the UN demanded better access for civilians displaced in recent fighting. Almost a week after the government said its troops had killed Velupillai Prabhakaran, 54, in an […]

May 24, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Sunday it would allow UN aid workers access to civilians who remain in camps after the defeat of the Tamil Tigers, but only once rebels hiding among the refugees had been weeded out.UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, on a visit to one camp housing 200,000 Tamils, had […]

May 24, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Sunday it would not allow aid workers complete access to civilians who remain held in camps after the defeat of the Tamil Tigers until rebels hiding among the refugees had been weeded out.United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, on a visit to one camp housing 200,000 Tamils, […]

May 22, 2009 (AFP) – More than 6,200 Sri Lankan soldiers were killed and nearly 30,000 wounded in security forces’ final offensive to completely defeat Tamil Tiger separatists, state television reported Friday. Rajapakse, who is also President Mahinda Rajapakse’s brother, said a total of 23,790 military men and women had been killed since 1981. He […]

May 22, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse on Friday brushed off calls for an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by government troops in their offensive against Tamil Tiger rebels.“There are some who tried to stop our military campaign by threatening to haul us before war crimes tribunals,” Rajapakse said in a […]

May 21, 2009 (LBO) – Indian Ocean navies need to co-operate better to ensure adequate responses to challenges ranging from terrorism to natural disasters, Sri Lankan navy commander Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda said.It would be based on a consensual and co-operative approach to find remedies for regional maritime security concerns. “This forum will be a springboard […]

May 20, 2009 (LBO) – The United States said a new power sharing deal and tolerance was required to achieve lasting peace in Sri Lanka and truly defeat terrorism.“The United States welcomes the cessation of fighting in Sri Lanka and the apparent conclusion to its long-running conflict,” a statement issued by the US embassy in […]

May 20, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka celebrated victory over the Tamil Tigers with a national holiday on Wednesday as the army hunted down fugitive rebels, shooting dead eight thought to have escaped from the final battle.Under international pressure to reach out to the Tamil minority, President Mahinda Rajapakse vowed on Tuesday that a political […]

May 18, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has detained four doctors who worked inside Tamil Tiger territory, treating wounded civilians and providing reports on heavy civilian casualties that contradicted government accounts, an official said Monday.Doctors Thurairaja Varatharajah, Thangamuttu Sathyamurthi and V.Shanmugarajah were arrested when they crossed over to government territory on Sunday. Another doctor and […]

BRUSSELS, May 18, 2009 (AFP) – The European Union on Monday called for an independent enquiry into alleged human rights violations during the conflict between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels in northern Sri Lanka.EU foreign ministers, in an agreed statement, said the European Union was “appalled by the loss of innocent civilian lives as […]

May 18, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s military declared a final victory Monday in its decades-old conflict with the Tamil Tigers, after routing the remnants of the rebel army and killing its leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.“All military operations have come to a stop,” army chief Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka said in a statement after troops overran […]