‘s Central Bank calls for better fiscal policies to maintain stability

Apr.27 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank has called for better fiscal policies and continued reforms to maintain growth and economic stability, in its annual report on the country’s economic performance.The Bank said Thursday the country grew by 6 percent in 2005, a day after the Finance Ministry said it grew by 6.2 percent last […]

Sri Lanka forecasts 1Q06 GDP at 6.8%

Apr. 26 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s economy is expected to grow at an annual pace of 6.8 percent during the first quarter of 2006, despite setbacks in the peace process and worries that the country may slip back to war. Though the budget deficit was high at 8.7 percent of GDP, due to high nominal […]

Tigers provoking backlash with killings: Sri Lanka

Apr. 24 (AFP) – Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels hacked to death a mother feeding her baby after gunning down six farmers in a killing spree designed to provoke a backlash, the defence ministry said Monday.Members of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) snatched the infant and chopped the woman to pieces at Seeruwila […]

Rights group slams Sri Lanka for not saving Tamil civilians

Apr. 25 (AFP) – Sri Lankan security forces stood by as Sinhalese mobs murdered Tamils after a suspected Tamil Tiger bomb attack earlier this month at a busy market, a human rights watchdog charged Tuesday.The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the Colombo government failed to respond to attacks by Sinhalese men armed with […]

More killings send tension soaring in Sri Lanka

Apr. 25 (AFP) – Tension gripped Sri Lanka’s north-eastern Trincomalee district Tuesday after an overnight killing of a hotel owner police say was designed to provoke inter-communal riots. The man was gunned down around midnight on the same day suspected Tamil Tiger rebels hacked to death a mother feeding her baby, police said. “The latest […]

Woman suicide bomber kills 10, wounds Sri Lanka army chief

Apr. 25 (AFP) – A Tamil Tiger suicide bomber pretending to be pregnant blew herself up Tuesday seriously wounding Sri Lanka’s army chief and killing 10 others, police and doctors said.More than 30 people were also injured by the blast inside the high security zone of Colombo’s main military base, police said. The attack on […]

Suicide bombing blow to peace bid: monitors

Apr. 25 (AFP) – A suicide bombing aimed at Sri Lanka’s army chief was “another serious blow” for a fragile ceasefire and attempts to broker peace between the government and Tamil rebels, Scandinavian truce monitors said Tuesday.“This attack is yet another serious blow to the ceasefire agreement and the peace process,” the Scandinavian-run Sri Lanka […]

Blasts heard in Sri Lanka rebel territory after suicide attack

Apr. 25 (AFP) – Loud explosions were heard in rebel-held parts of Sri Lanka Tuesday after the government accused Tamil Tiger guerrillas of a suicide bombing which critically wounded the army chief, residents and the military said.The blasts were reported from Sampur, an area of the troubled Trincomalee district, regional police chief Rohan Abeywardena said […]

Sri Lankan troops kill two Tiger suspects amid new tensions

Apr.24 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops shot dead two men who were trying to set up a Claymore mine Monday intended for security forces in the island’s east, a defence official said.The men were killed at Vandaramullai in the district of Batticaloa as army soldiers conducted an operation to clear the main road of mines […]

Sri Lanka seeks Tiger ban in Europe as toll hits 14

Apr. 23 (AFP) – Sri Lanka Sunday asked the European Union to designate Tamil Tiger rebels as terrorists, saying such a move could nudge them into resuming talks on a collapsing ceasefire.The request came as 14 more people were killed in fresh violence linked to the latest clashes with Tamil Tiger guerrillas in the island’s […]

More blasts in Sri Lanka as Norway mounts new peace bid

Apr.21 (AFP) – Three policemen were killed and three injured in two mine attacks in Sri Lanka Friday, police said, as Norway launched a fresh bid to save the island’s tottering peace process. At least 65 people were killed in the bombings alone while the Tigers said more than a dozen were killed in attacks […]

Four more killed in Sri Lanka violence

Apr. 20 (AFP) – At least four people were killed in Sri Lanka on Thursday as a Norwegian peace envoy headed for talks with Tamil Tiger rebels on saving the island’s ceasefire, officials said.Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels shot dead a rival activist in the eastern town of Batticaloa on Thursday and fought a gun battle […]

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