Tag: lbo
Sri Lankan soldiers missing after heavy fighting
Oct 8, 2006 (AFP) – Twelve Sri Lankan government soldiers were missing Sunday following fierce fighting with Tamil rebels in the east of the island that left at least seven combatants dead, the defence ministry said. There were conflicting statements on casualties from the government and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after […]
Ongoing bloodshed paralyses Sri Lanka peace bid
Oct 8, 2006 (AFP) – Foreign aid donors have demanded peace talks in Sri Lanka to avert full-scale war, but the daily bloodshed has reduced broker Norway’s ability to coax rebels and the government to the table, diplomats say.During a visit here last week, Norwegian envoy Jon Hanssen-Bauer failed to secure agreement on a venue […]
Sri Lanka troops, rebels keep up attacks as peace bid stalls
Oct 7, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels kept up attacks against each other for a second day Saturday, as the rebels said the new fighting represented a serious blow to peace efforts. Air attacks against the rebels continued amid exchanges of fire in the eastern district of Batticaloa where heavy […]
Fresh fighting erupts as Sri Lanka peace bid stalls
Oct 6, 2006 (AFP) – Heavy sea and land battles erupted Friday in Sri Lanka with the military reporting the recovery of 22 bodies of Tamil rebels after a Norwegian envoy failed to secure a deal to re-launch peace talks.Some 60,000 people have been killed in the separatist conflict since 1972. The military and the […]
Charities demand access to 200,000 in Sri Lanka war zones
Oct 6, 2006 (AFP) – International relief agencies on Friday demanded access to some 200,000 people displaced by Sri Lanka’s worsening ethnic conflict and denounced restrictions on aid workers. A group of foreign non-governmental organisations in a joint appeal asked both the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebels to ensure that aid workers had […]
Sri Lanka peace bid hits new snag
Oct 5, 2006 (AFP) – Norwegian peace brokers were Thursday struggling to get Sri Lanka’s warring parties to agree on a venue for talks, with Tiger rebels demanding Oslo and the government Geneva, diplomats said.“The LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is going on the basis they want talks in Oslo because that was the […]
Sri Lanka probing foreign aid groups
Oct 5, 2006 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Thursday it was probing the activities of several foreign aid groups operating in areas controlled by both the government and Tamil Tigers rebels.“The government has reviewed the work visas of certain members of the… non-governmental organisations in view of the continuing police investigations into allegations of inappropriate […]
Sri Lanka plans to spend more and borrow further next year
October 5, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to spend more and borrow further next year as expenses for defence hardware and fuel related subsidies escalate. Total state spending will climb 42 percent to 804.6 billion rupees from 568.3 billion rupees in 2006, the government said Thursday while tabling the 2007 budget appropriation bill before […]
Funny World
October 5, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka Thursday cut retail fuel prices, but raised prices for alcohol and cigarettes, as the government disclosed plans to raise defence expenses and hike overall spending by over 40 percent next year. In addition, defence spending is to climb by 45 percent to 139.5 billion rupees, with military procurements […]
Staying High
SINGAPORE, Oct 5, 2006 (AFP) – Oil prices rebounded in Asian trade Thursday, coming off near 8-month lows on continuing unrest in Nigeria and amid reports that OPEC members are ready to cut production in a bid to support the market, dealers said. At 11:25 am (0325 GMT) New York’s main contract, light sweet crude […]
Big Plans
Oct 04, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will flag off two new power plants in Kerawalapitiya, at least one of them run to on liquefied natural gas. But the island is still looking down the barrel of power cuts over the next two years. Sri Lanka’s energy demand is expected to grow at about eleven […]