Peaceful Polling In Eastern Sri Lanka

Polling in the local body elections in the eastern Sri Lankan Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa went off peacefully Monday, though there were some allegations of vote rigging, sources in the district said.

There were nine political parties and 22 independent groups fielding 831 candidates for 101 posts in nine Pradeshiya Sabhas and the Batticaloa town municipality.

Security was tight with 6,425 police and paramilitary personnel on duty in the 285 polling booths.

The elections had assumed importance because they were the first to be held after the Tamil areas of Batticaloa district were liberated from the clutches of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in mid 2007.

The successful conclusion of the elections is expected to enthuse President Mahinda Rajapaksa to hold elections to an eastern provincial council. The Sri Lankan northeast has not had provincial council elections since 1990.

Read more,
http://newspostindia.com/report-41639

Prabhakaran makes his first public appearance

LTTE supremo Prabhakaran made his first public appearance, after it was claimed that he and two of his top aides were injured in a Sri Lankan Air Force strike that surfaced in November 2007. The occasion was to pay homage to pro-LTTE Lawmaker and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP from Jaffna district -- Sivanesan -- in the rebel-held Wanni area in Sri Lanka's embattled north.

Prabhakaran was accompanied by his top aides Pottu Amman -- Intelligence Chief of LTTE and key accused in the Rajjiv Gandhi Assassination case, and Nadesan -- the newly appointed political head of the LTTE.

The LTTE claimed that Sivanesan was killed last Saturday (March 8, 2008) by Sri Lankan Army's -- Deep Penetration Unit -- near Mankulum area, but the Defence officials of Sri Lanka claimed that he died in a rebel-held Wanni.

Read more,
http://www.timesnow.tv/NewsDtls.aspx?NewsID=6382
Photos,
http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=24901

Explosion in Wellawatte -- 1 dead, 4 injured

An explosion believed to have been triggered off by the LTTE occured around 6.50 am today (10) near the Roxy Theatre on Galle Road, Wellawatte.

Initial reports indicate that one person died and four school children (two boys and two girls) received injuries as a result. The injured were rushed to the Kalubowil Teaching Hospital. One of the injured is said to be in critical condition.

The LTTE, driven out of the East and driven deeper and deeper into the Wanni by the security forces has since of late reverted to strategies used two decades ago, focusing on 'soft targets'.

The LTTE has triggered off several IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) over the past several months while alert security and public have helped avert many more possible tragedies.

The Government has repeatedly urged the public to exercise utmost vigilance regarding their surroundings and all suspicious persons and objects.

News Extracted from,
http://news.lk/index.php?
Photos,
http://news.lk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5169&Itemid=44
http://www.lankaenews.com/Sinhala/news.php?id=4668
http://www.nationalsecurity.lk/fullnews.php?id=11069