Category: Politics

Sept 4 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops Monday captured an eastern coastal town used by Tiger rebels to launch artillery attacks against the strategic naval port of Trincomalee, a government minister told AFP.Security forces moved into Sampur, 10 kilometers (six miles) across the Koddiya Bay from the Trincomalee naval and air complex, with hardly any […]

Sept 4 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops Monday captured a town used by Tiger rebels to launch artillery against the key naval port of Trincomalee, but President Mahinda Rajapakse said the victory would not lead to all-out war. Security forces have moved into Sampur, 10 kilometers (six miles) across the Koddiya Bay from the Trincomalee […]

Sept 3, 2006 (AFP) – Fighting between troops and Tamil Tigers near a key northeast port hit a lull Sunday, residents said, a day after 80 rebels were reportedly killed in a sea battle off the northern Jaffna peninsula.Artillery guns were silent in the restive port district of Trincomalee since the weekend, residents said, adding […]

Sept 3, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka on Sunday stepped up its campaign against Nordic truce monitors who accused government forces of involvement in the killing of 17 employees of a French aid charity last month.After accusing the Norwegian-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) of being “biased” and “unprofessional,” the office coordinating the peace process […]

Sept 2, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s navy killed at least 80 Tamil Tiger guerrillas after a six-hour battle with a flotilla of rebel boats off the island’s northern waters Saturday, the defence ministry said.The boats of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were trying to attack the northern port of Kankesanthurai at the […]

Sept 2, 2006 (AFP) – A second cargo ship was loaded here Saturday with supplies for desperate residents of Sri Lanka’s northern Jaffna peninsula, where the navy said it killed 80 Tamil rebels in a fierce six-hour sea battle.The vessel containing food, drugs and other essential goods was slated to leave Sunday on a two-day […]

COLOMBO, Sept 1, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has enforced new controls on foreign aid workers after 17 local employees of a French charity were murdered, allegedly by security forces, aid officials said Friday. Local and foreign non-government organisations were told to obtain work permits for expatriate staff by Friday, before the deadline was extended […]

GENEVA, Sept 1, 2006 (AFP) – The International Committee of the Red Cross on Friday pressed Sri Lanka’s warring parties to allow supplies to reach tens of thousands of increasingly desperate people in the isolated city of Jaffna. Reto Meister, head of the ICRC’s Asia-Pacific operations, said the northern city of around half a million […]

Sept 1, 2006 (AFP) – A powerful Claymore mine exploded Friday in Sri Lanka’s northern Jaffna peninsula, killing one soldier and wounding four more, the defence ministry said.The victims were on foot patrol when they were hit, the ministry said. “Five soldiers suffered injuries and were admitted to hospital,” the ministry said. It added that […]

LONDON, Aug 31, 2006 (AFP) – British Prime Minister Tony Blair met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Thursday for private talks on the political situation in Sri Lanka, a spokeswoman for Blair said.Rajapakse has said he was ready for unconditional talks with the Tigers and described the current military action against the rebels as […]

CHENNAI, India, Aug 31, 2006 (AFP) – More than 11,000 Tamil refugees have fled to India since January to escape renewed fighting between the Sri Lankan army and separatist rebels and more are likely to come, officials said Thursday. The figure includes a batch of about 500 refugees who travelled by boat to reach Mandapam […]

COLOMBO, Aug 31, 2006 (AFP) – The Sri Lankan government demanded proof Thursday of allegations by Nordic truce monitors that security forces were responsible for the massacre of 17 aid workers of a French charity. “It is premature to blame the government without any supporting evidence,” Sri Lankan government spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said in Colombo. […]