Tag: Sri Lanka
Heavy fighting erupts in northern Sri Lanka
COLOMBO, June 2, 2007 (AFP) – Government forces and Tamil Tiger rebels were locked in heavy combat in northern Sri Lanka Saturday night, as the military bombed rebel positions elsewhere, official sources said. Heavy shelling was heard in Pampaimadu in the district of Vavuniya, which borders the rebel-held Wanni region, residents and officials said. There […]
Sri Lanka army gun site shelled by Tamil Tigers
June 3, 2007 (AFP) – Tamil Tiger rebels launched a major attack on a military gun position in northern Sri Lanka, killing at least one soldier and wounding more than 15, the military said Sunday.The conflict has killed more than 5,000 people in the past 18 months. The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) […]
Sri Lanka bans trucks travelling to capital from Tiger-controlled areas
June 2, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Saturday it would not allow trucks coming from rebel-held areas in the northeast into Colombo after police claimed to have discovered explosives destined for the city in a goods carrier.Residents in areas bordering rebel-held Wanni in the northeast were told not to send trucks south after police […]
Sri Lanka media minister bats for attacked journo
June 2, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s media minister has condemned the attack on a photo journalist of a Sri Lankan daily and has asked security forces to respect the accreditation issued by his ministry, the Department of Government Information (DGI) said. The DGI which accredits journalists, quoting Mass Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardana says […]
Sri Lanka air force bomb Tiger stronghold in the east
June 2, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s air force on Saturday bombed suspected rebel Tamil Tiger targets located in a jungle in the island’s east, the defence ministry said. The conflict has killed more than 5,000 people in the past 18 months. Fighter jets bombed the jungles of Thoppigala in the eastern district of Batticaloa […]
India urges Sri Lanka not to shop for arms in China, Pakistan
CHENNAI, India, June 1, 2007 (AFP) – India is urging Sri Lanka not to buy weapons from China and Pakistan to fight Tamil rebels, New Delhi’s national security advisor said. “We are the big power in the region.It is very clear,” M. K. Narayanan told reporters Thursday evening. “Whatever their requirements, they (Sri Lanka) should […]
Sri Lanka gets French help to develop construction industry and tsunami re-building
June 1, 2007 (AFP) – France on Friday gave Sri Lanka a 10 million euro (13.4 million dollar) loan to develop its construction industry and rebuild areas hit by the December 2004 tsunami, the finance ministry said. The money will be channelled through local banks to help contractors buy equipment and for their working capital […]
Sri Lanka sitting on a budget deficit time bomb: economist
June 01, 2007 (LBO) – A large budget deficit is a fiscal time bomb, and central bank attempts to stabilize the economy may not work unless support comes from fiscal discipline, a British economics don has said. “In the end, no matter how successfully the central bank tries to maintain financial and monetary stability, if […]
Sri Lanka government offers to talk peace, amidst fighting
June 1, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s president offered to open peace talks with Tamil Tiger rebels on Friday even as security forces were locked in combat with the guerrillas. President Mahinda Rajapakse would enter negotiations with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) if they agreed to resume where they left off in October […]
Sri Lankan president ready for peace talks amid fighting
June 1, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s president is ready to resume peace talks with Tamil Tiger rebels even as security forces are locked in combat with the guerrillas, a presidential spokesman said Friday.President Mahinda Rajapakse would enter negotiations with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) if the guerrillas agreed to resume where they […]
” Tamils from capital
COLOMBO, June 1, 2007 (AFP) – Hundreds of minority Tamils have been asked to leave Sri Lanka’s capital and return to their villages, some in conflict areas, because they are a “threat to national security,” police said Friday. Police Inspector-General Victor Perera said Tamils from the embattled northern and eastern provinces were spending long periods […]
Sri Lanka – Belgian tyre giant looks to roll faster
May 31, 2007 (AFP) – One of the world’s biggest solid tyre makers is trying to double its turnover and turn Sri Lanka into a key exporter of rubber products. “People keep asking us if its safe to live here, invest here and I say ‘yes’.We have had no problems. There are always risks associated […]