Category: Politics
Italian police arrest 33 Tamils on terror charges
ROME, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Italian police Wednesday arrested 33 Sri Lankan Tamils charged with belonging to the outlawed Tamil Tigers group fighting a separatist insurgency against the government in Colombo, an official said.Twenty-eight people were arrested in a series of raids on the mainland, suspected of membership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil […]
Malaysia to probe link to Sri Lanka bomb plot: report
KUALA LUMPUR, June 18, 2008 (AFP) – Malaysia will help Sri Lanka track down a suspect believed to be involved in a Tamil Tiger bomb plot in Colombo, a report said Wednesday. Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who oversees internal security, said authorities would investigate a report about the arrest of six members of the […]
” countries for journalists
BELGRADE, June 17, 2008 (AFP) – The International Press Institute has highlighted the oppressive conditions for media in a number of countries, including Zimbabwe and Russia, officials said. The IPI board “unanimously” voted to keep Ethiopia, Nepal, Russia, Sri Lanka, Venezuela and Zimbabwe on its “watch list” of countries where press freedom has significantly deteriorated, […]
French charity seeks international probe into Sri Lanka massacre
June 17, 2008 (AFP) – A French charity demanded on Tuesday an international probe into the execution-style killing of 17 of its employees in Sri Lanka in 2006 after denouncing local investigations.Paris-based Action Against Hunger, or ACF, asked the French government and the European Union, among others, to set up an international panel to probe […]
Canada adds World Tamil Movement to terror list
OTTAWA, June 16, 2008 (AFP) – The government of Canada on Monday added a second Tamil group to its list of banned terrorist organizations, outlawing the World Tamil Movement.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE or commonly known as Tamil Tigers), who are fighting a bloody independence campaign in Sri Lanka, were added to Canada’s […]
Sri Lanka suicide bombing kills five: police
June 16, 2008 (AFP) – A suspected Tamil Tiger rebel detonated explosives carried on his motorcycle in northern Sri Lanka Monday, killing at least five people and wounded many more, police said.Vavuniya borders Tamil rebel-held territory further north of the island.The suicide bomber staged the attack directly in front of a police administration office in […]
Sri Lanka suicide bombing kills nine: police
June 16, 2008 (AFP) – At least nine people were killed and 40 wounded Monday in a suicide bombing at a police office in northern Sri Lanka, officials said.Police said the area was sealed off as victims were being rushed to hospital. Vavuniya borders Tamil rebel-held territory further north of the island.The suicide bomber detonated […]
Motorcycle suicide bomber kills 12 police in Sri Lanka: officials
COLOMBO, June 16, 2008 (AFP) – A suspected Tamil Tiger rebel detonated explosives on his motorcycle outside a police station in northern Sri Lanka Monday, killing at least 12 officers and wounding 40 others, officials said. The blast occurred during morning rush hour directly in front of the police building in Vavuniya town, 258 kilometres […]
Sri Lanka says Tiger base hit, 17 dead in clashes
June 15, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan war planes destroyed a suspected Tamil Tiger logistics base in the island’s northeast Sunday after ground battles left 15 guerrillas and two soldiers dead, the defence ministry said.Air force fighter jets pounded a “logistics base and combat vehicle conversion plant” in Mullaitivu district early Sunday, the ministry said. […]
Sri Lanka govt muzzled media during EU visit: rights group
June 13, 2008 (LBO) – The Sri Lankan government pressured independent newspapers not to publish critical stories during a visit by a European Union delegation to the island earlier this week, a media rights group said. The statement said that journalists working for several newspapers told Reporters Without Borders on condition of anonymity that during […]
Sri Lanka jets bomb Tiger weapons stock: military
June 12, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lankan war planes destroyed a suspected Tamil Tiger rebel arms manufacturing facility in the island’s north on Thursday as ground battles killed 15 people, the defence ministry said.The air force hit an “arms and ammunition manufacturing yard” of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the ministry said in […]
Sri Lanka Tigers say 27 kid fighters released; UNICEF says there are more
June 13, 2008 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers said Friday they had released 27 more child soldiers, and contested a United Nations estimate that over 1,000 under-age fighters were still in rebel ranks.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who are fighting for an independent state and control much of the north of Sri […]