Aerial Attacks to Support Ground Troops Conducted

Ongoing offensives of the troops in MANNAR and MULLAITHIVU districts received a further boost this afternoon (21) when two Sri Lankan Air Force sorties shelled LTTE gun positions, from where the terrorists were directing artillery and other heavy fire towards the troops.

Those two air sorties carried out between 12.00 noon and 1.00 p.m. enormously helped the troops to move forward more confidently causing more and more losses to the terrorists.

Pilots confirmed the enemy’s firing capacity was considerably reduced as a result of those aerial attacks.

Sri Lanka - Reggie Ranatunga sworn in as member of parliament

Reggie Ranatunga, a provincial council governor in Sri Lanka, was Thursday appointed a member of parliament for the ruling coalition to represent the Gampaha district, north of Colombo.

Ranatunga, the father of Sri Lanka's cricket star-turned-politician Arjuna Ranatunga, was sworn in as a member by the speaker of parliament W J M Lokubandara.

Ranatunga fills the parliamentary seat left vacant by the death of Sripathy Sooriyarachchi, also representing Gampaha district, who was killed on February 9 in a motor vehicle accident.

Ranatunga is the governor of the Sabaragamuwa province, south east of Colombo, and has also been a parliamentarian and deputy cabinet minister on a previous occasion.

Extracted from,
http://www.lankaeverything.com/vinews/srilanka/20080221035218.php

Jayalalithaa questions 'inaction' against VCK leader

The war of words between Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa on the LTTE issue continued unabated with the latter on Wednesday wanting to know why the government had not yet taken action against Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) leader Thol Tirumavalavan for his alleged statements in support of the banned outfit.

Though the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) had been repealed, the Chief Minister was still harping on it and maintaining that there was no legal avenue to take action against the VCK leader, she said in a statement here.

She said the Centre had banned the LTTE under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in 1992 which was being renewed every two years. As per Section 39 of the Act, expressing support to the proscribed LTTE was a crime, attracting an imprisonment of 10 years, she contended.

Read more,
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200802201744.htm

Tamil Separatists Hail Kosovo's Independence Declaration

Separatist Sri Lankan Tamils have hailed the emergence of an independent Kosovo with Western support, saying it augurs well for the liberation of 'oppressed' minorities like the Tamils of northeast Sri Lanka.

Most Sri Lankans do not relish the prospect of their small island country breaking up on the prodding of powerful Western nations. But while radicals like the Janatha Vimukthi Permuna (JVP) would like the Mahinda Rajapaksa government to take a strong anti-West stance, the liberals are urging restraint on the plea that belligerence will only provoke the West to side with the Tamil separatists when it comes to the crunch.

In its editorial, the Colombo-based radical Tamil daily Sudar Oli said it was not surprising that the Sri Lankan government was the first to condemn Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) Sunday.

Read more,
http://newspostindia.com/report-38193

Lankan refugees arrive in Rameswaram

Three Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, including a three-year-old girl, arrived at Arichamunai coast, following fierce fight between the Sri Lankan forces and LTTE in the island nation today.

Police sources said the trio Dhava Selvi (27), her daughter Thrisa (3) and younger brother Anthony Doss (19), hailing from Vavuniya in Sri Lanka arrived here with the help of a clandestine boat operator after paying Rs 12,000.

The intelligence sleuths and the local police interrogated them.

Extracted from,
http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?

Top UN official arrives in Sri Lanka

Angela Kane, UN assistant secretary general for political affairs arrived in Sri Lanka today following a request from UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon for a weeklong fact finding mission, Foreign Ministry announced.

“The top UN official will come here for a week for primarily to review the work of the UN Country Team in the South Asian nation in all key areas,” a statement said.

“The visit is part of her regular consultations in the areas of her responsibility,” it added.

Foreign Ministry said that Ms. Kane will hold talks with the Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona and envoys from the European Union, Norway and India. She will also meet the opposition leader Ranil Wickremasinghe. The top UN official is expected to meet leaders of the All Party Representative's Committee (APRC) during her weeklong visit from Feb 20 through 26.

Exrtacted from,
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_08/February20124758JV.html

Sri Lanka fight to stay in series

Sri Lanka's match against Australia at the MCG on Friday is not technically a must-win game for the visitors but Mahela Jayawardene knows another defeat could be as good as fatal to their CB Series. Australia are all but into the deciders - a victory on Friday will confirm it - and they are taking the opportunity to again rest their spearhead Brett Lee.

However, Jayawardene said with several Australia batsmen out of form the hosts would be keen to regain their touch ahead of the finals. "I've played Australia quite a few times," Jayawardene said. "They don't take any game lightly. Even without Brett they've done pretty well, they've shown that they can control things out there in the middle."

Read more,
http://content-www.cricinfo.com/baggygreen/content/story/339086.html

No drop in Sri Lankan labour force, says mission

The Sri Lankan embassy has said there is no drop in the number of job attestations handled by the mission even after it raised the minimum salary of skilled labourers from the country at the beginning of this year.

Announcing this yesterday, an embassy official told Gulf Times that the demand for labour from Sri Lanka in Qatar has been steady even after the increase in the minimum salary.
“We are getting the same or better response than before even after the embassy effected a hike in the minimum salaries of Sri Lankan labourers,â€‌ the official said.

The embassy had hiked the minimum salary for skilled labour from Sri Lanka to QR900 from January 1 this year. Earlier, the minimum salary of a Sri Lankan skilled worker was QR650.

Read more,
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?

Powerful earthquake in Sumatra

A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6, struck off the western coast of Sumatra island close to Simeulue Island this morning. An immediate tsunami warning has been issued in the area, possibly because the quake was deep under the sea bed.

Department of Meteorology stats the earthquake has no effect on Sri Lanka.

Extracted from,
http://www.lankatruth.com/index.htm
bulletin issued by PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER,
http://www.prh.noaa.gov/ptwc/messages/indian/2008/indian.2008.02.20.094708.txt

Three soldiers die in terrorist attack

Three soldiers who were on route picket duties died when terrorists attacked them in near Galge on Buttala - Kataragama road today (20) around 11.00 a.m.

In a confrontation terrorists have fled with their injured and the soldiers who rushed from the nearby Camp are pursuing them.

Extracted from,
http://www.nationalsecurity.lk/fullnews.php?id=10737

Sri Lanka Navy Participated in the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium

The inaugural event of a newly launched cooperative, consultative and inclusive regional initiative titled the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) which started on the 14th of February came to a conclusion yesterday (18) in New Delhi. The IONS can be seen as a closer model of the Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS).

Sri Lanka Navy Commander Vice Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda was invited to participate in this inaugural INOS which seek to provide a regional conversation among the Naval Chiefs of all the littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

Twenty eight countries including Sri Lanka took part in initial discussions which aims at drafting a Charter to enhance the Maritime Security in the Indian Ocean which is considered as a vital sea area to the protection of Sea Lines of Communication around the world. The drafted Charter would be ratified after a period of six months following amendments if necessary.

Read more,
http://www.asiantribune.com/?q=node/9681

Three arrested for threatening candidates in E Sri Lanka

At least three people have been arrested for issuing threats to candidates ahead of local elections in eastern Sri Lanka, police said Tuesday.

A police spokesman in the Batticaloa district told Xinhua by phone that three people, all Muslims from the Kathankudy area were arrested alongside printed material which had been used to issue death threats on candidates.

The Batticaloa district is scheduled to hold elections on March10 to appoint local councilors to nine local councils.

The candidates from the TMVP (Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal) party had complained of death threats received allegedly from Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.

The three people arrested will be investigated for their links with the LTTE, the police said.

The election in the east will be the first since the government in July 2007 claimed that the entire Eastern Province had been cleared of Tamil Tiger rebels.

Read more,
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/19/content_7632700.htm

Foreign Ministers of Sri Lanka and Singapore discuss ties, progress in Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama today apprised Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo of the current political situation in Sri Lanka and outlined developments relating to the termination of the Ceasefire Agreement with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

He also briefed his counterpart on the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) proposals and the upcoming elections in the Eastern Province. The Minister reiterated that the Sri Lankan government remains committed to a peaceful solution of the present conflict.

Noting that air connectivity between Singapore and Sri Lanka had increased to 44 flights per week, the Minister asked Singapore to consider Sri Lanka as a “source country” for recruiting foreign staff for the planned integrated resorts in Singapore.

Read more,
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_08/February18143637JR.html

Sri Lanka to report on child soldiers

A report from the Sri Lanka government on the recruitment of child soldiers in the country is expected to be presented to the United Nations.

Government officials announced plans to present the report on forced military indoctrination of children at the U.N. Security Council meeting on Thursday. The U.N. recently singled out the terrorist organization Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam operating in Sri Lanka as among the top human-rights violators in the world, Sri Lanka's Daily News reported.

Sri Lanka Disaster Management and Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe say a delegation from the country is traveling to U.N. headquarters in New York to apprise the world body on what he called progress that has been made by a committee appointed to inquire into abductions and recruitment of children for armed conflict.

Read more,
http://www.metimes.com/Security/2008/02/18/