Animal rights group protests LTTE attack on zoo

An international animal rights organisation has protested the bombing of a zoo in Dehiwela in Sri Lanka, allegedly by Tamil Tiger rebels earlier this month. “In addition to injuring several human beings - which was no doubt its intent - the explosive device that was set off near the zoo’s birds enclosure terrified many animals in the zoo,” said Ingrid E. Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in a letter to the Tamil Tiger leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran.

At least seven people, including two children, were injured, when a grenade kept near the birds’ enclosure went off Feb 3.

Newkirk said that animals got caught in the cross fire of wars all over the world and countless animals were being killed either intentionally or accidentally in bomb attacks worldwide.

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Hand grenade explodes inside Dehiwala Zoo premises

Six people received minor injuries and were rushed to the general hospital Kalubowila, when a hand grenade exploded inside the Dehiwala Zoo, few minutes ago this morning (February 3).

Dehiwala police rushed to the scene and sealed that area, Police sources said. The Kalubowila Hospital sources when contacted said that, among the six people admitted a person was suffering from the shock caused due to the explosion.

The admitted suffered no severed injuries, the sources further said. Meanwhile, a person has revealed witnessing that the explosion was occurred when some unknown individual has thrown an object into a litter bin, near the "Birds Paradise" at the zoo.

" A flash of light was followed by a shock wave and that's all I could recollect", he further revealed, speaking to our correspondent at the hospital.

The motive of the grenade attack is not known and the responsible are yet top be identified, as Police are conducting investigations, Dehiwala Police said.

Extracted from,
http://defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080203_05