Category: Politics
US calls for reconciliation, access to refugee camps
WASHINGTON, May 21, 2009 (AFP) – The United States pressed Sri lanka Thursday to lift restrictions on access to refugee camps in a strip of land where government forces this week crushed a three-decade-old Tamil insurgency. “We urge the government to allow the ICRC, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the UN immediate […]
Top UN official visits Tamil refugee camps: UN
UNITED NATIONS, May 21, 2009 (AFP) – A senior UN official was allowed to visit camps in Sri Lanka housing refugees from intense fighting that earlier this week ended in the defeat of a 30-year-old Tamil insurgency. Vijay Nambiar, chief of staff of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, visited camps around Vavuniya that are housing […]
UN chief to urge humanitarian access in Sri Lanka
May 22, 2009 (AFP) – UN chief Ban Ki-moon was due to land in Sri Lanka later Friday on a 24-hour mission to press its government for unfettered humanitarian access to an estimated 250,000 civilians displaced by conflict.The secretary general was expected in the evening ahead of talks Saturday with President Mahinda Rajapakse and Foreign […]
Sri Lanka lost over 6,200 troops to beat Tigers: report
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 […]
Sri Lanka president dismisses threat of war crimes charges
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 […]
Sri Lanka navy chief urges common approach to maritime security
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 […]
Russia welcomes Sri Lanka defeat of Tamil Tigers
MOSCOW, May 19, 2009 (AFP) – Russia on Tuesday welcomed Sri Lanka’s announcement of the Tamil Tiger rebels’ defeat, saying it supported the Asian government’s “fight against terrorism.” Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse on Tuesday announced the final defeat of the Tamil Tigers, even as rebels insisted their leader was still alive and vowed to […]
UN rights body to hold special meeting on Sri Lanka
GENEVA, May 19, 2009 (AFP) – The UN human rights council will hold a special session next week on the situation in Sri Lanka after the end of Asia’s longest running civil war, a statement said Tuesday. “It is hoped that the holding of this special session will contribute towards the cause of peace”, said […]
Sri Lanka needs new power sharing deal to end conflict: US
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 […]
Sri Lanka fugitive Tigers shot as nation celebrates victory
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 […]
Sri Lanka detains war zone doctors
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 […]
Tamil Tigers decimated, Sri Lanka president to give victory speech
May 19, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse is to deliver a victory speech to parliament Tuesday following the bloody defeat of the Tamil Tigers and their decades-old war for an independent ethnic homeland. Government commandos on Monday stormed into the last tiny patch of jungle held by the guerrillas, killing Tamil Tiger […]