Tag: lbo

Oct 26, 2006 (AFP) – At least 30 people were killed or disappeared last week in the embattled Sri Lankan flashpoint town of Jaffna, Tamil rebels said Thursday, despite pledges to hold peace talks to end a bitter ethnic conflict.“The rate of killing and disappearance in Jaffna showed no sign of letting up,” the Tamil […]

VAVUNIYA, Sri Lanka, Oct 26, 2006 (AFP) – Vaithilingam Mahenthiran and two of his friends were gunned down on a Saturday afternoon earlier this month.The day before, two other young men were shot to death and dumped in a ditch on the roadside, their hands bound and heads hooded. Before the weekend was over, three […]

GENEVA, Oct 26, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s warring parties arrived in Geneva Thursday for their first face-to-face meeting in eight months amid international pressure to halt ethnic bloodshed and save a crumbling ceasefire.The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) returned to the Swiss city after suicide bombings, conventional war and tit-for-tat killings that […]

GENEVA, Oct 26, 2006 (AFP) – The advocacy group Human Rights Watch on Thursday urged the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels to use their talks in Geneva to end “escalating” and “rampant” abuse of civilians.Nearly 3,000 people have been killed and some 217,000 have fled their homes since bitter fighting escalated earlier this […]

TANDIKULAM CHECKPOINT, Sri Lanka, Oct 25, 2006 (AFP) – A long wooden pole laid across the road up ahead marks the start of Sri Lanka’s “Tigerland”.A colleague of his motioned to the field of vehicles and added: “After the peace talks, hopefully we won’t have to do this.” On this side of the pole lies […]

Oct 25, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka and Tamil Tiger negotiators have set different agendas for weekend peace talks in Switzerland following months of bloodshed. The Colombo government said Wednesday it wanted the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to commit to a schedule and to discuss the “core” issues in the island’s separatist armed […]

Oct 25 (LBO) – The European Commission will give Sri Lanka five million Euros or 667 million rupees in emergency aid to help over 200,000 internally displaced people in an increasingly violent local conflict. The additional funds will add to seven million euros approved for aid work in the country in July this year and […]

Oct 25, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has airlifted hundreds of tons of food and other essential items to Jaffna, which was cut off more than two months ago by fighting with Tamil rebels, the defense ministry said Wednesday. The military operated emergency flights Tuesday and Wednesday and was expected to ferry more goods to […]

ABU DHABI, Oct 25, 2006 (AFP) – Tamil Tiger rebels heading for peace talks in Geneva are banking on international pressure on the Sri Lankan government to stop the island returning to “real war”, a top guerrilla leader said Wednesday. “If the international community fails to put pressure on the government to implement the (February […]

Oct 24, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government and rebel negotiators headed to Switzerland Tuesday for talks aimed at saving a troubled ceasefire after 10 months of fighting killed more than 3,000 people, officials said.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government are under heavy diplomatic pressure to lift an eight-month impasse in […]

Oct 23, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s ruling party and the opposition agreed Monday to work together towards a political settlement to the island’s bloody ethnic fighting which has claimed more than 60,000 lives.The Tigers warned at the weekend they would unleash their bloody campaign island-wide if violence against Tamil areas continued, while the government […]