Sri Lanka Latest News

Monday, May 28, 2007

Bomb blast at Ratmalana belekkade junction

A bomb explosion has been occurred at the Belek Kade junction at Rathmalana short while ago.

According to the available information the target of the bomb has been an Army vehicle.

Commuters are advised to use alternative routes to avoid Rathmalana on the Colombo- Gall main road.

More information will follow.

Extracted from,
http://defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20070528_04

Sunday, May 27, 2007

LTTE Trincomalee intelligence leader 'Bharathi' killed

The media centre for national security says that LTTE intelligence unit head in Trincomalee Bharathi and three others have been killed in an attack launched by the Navy and the Special Task Force this morning.

The attack has been carried out in Iluppukulam, in Nilaweli at around 8:30 this morning. The MCNS said that the death of Bharathi was confirmed by listening to LTTE radio transmitters.

In a subsequent search operation security forces have discovered a Micro Pistol, a Magazine, a mobile phone and a Binoculars.

Extracted from,
http://www.lankaenews.com/English/news.php?id=4181

Army chief says Tamil rebels limited to pockets

Sri Lanka's Army Commander Sarath Fonseka said Saturday that his troops have been successful in limiting the Tamil Tiger rebels to pockets in the troubled Northern and Eastern provinces.

Fonseka told reporters in the central town of Kandy that his troops need to be commended.

"The LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is now limited to a few areas specially in the east. The priority for the Army now is to help government in its resettlement program of civilians," Fonseka said.

The Army since August last year launched several offensives against the rebels in the east driving them out of some of their key strongholds such as Sampur in the district of Trincomalee and Vakarai in the Batticaloa district.

The rebels have called both losses as tactical withdrawals.

Angry Delft Islanders burn five LTTE bodies

The Delft islanders burnt the five bodies of the LTTE Sea Tigers in anger when they were washed ashore on Friday. Several Sea Tiger cadres were killed by the Navy on Thursday when they launched an attack at the Queenta Beach in Delft, sources said.

The Sea Tigers had launched the attack in the wee hours on Thursday at the Naval post at the Queenta Beach in Delft where four sailors were killed. However, the Navy with the reinforcements and the aerial support of the Air Force had repulsed the attack successfully by destroying several LTTE vessels and killing more than twenty cadres on board, the sources said.

The Sea Tigers arrived at the Queenta Beach in fifteen boats and four of them carried the suicide cadres. Most of the vessels were destroyed by the Air Force planes and the Naval gunships, the sources said.

Sri Lanka government to reopen the Hingurana sugar factory

Sri Lanka Ministry of Investment Promotion and Enterprises Development has taken steps to reopen the Hingurana sugar factory which remains closed for around ten years.

The agreement to reopen the factory renamed as Galoya Plantation Company will be signed in the first week of June, Ministry sources said.

Fifty one percent of the stakes of the Galoya Plantation Company will be owned by the government and Browns and Lanka Orix Leasing Company will own 24.5 % each.

With the commencement of production in the factory 820 persons will obtain direct employment and 4,400 families that will grow sugarcane to supply to the factory will also be benefited.

Sri Lanka currently produces only 10% of the country’s annual need of 625,000 metric tons of sugar.

Extracted from,
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_07/May27134807SL.html

IOC to produce lubricants in Sri Lanka

India's oil major Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) on Friday secured a license to produce lubricants in Sri Lanka so as to boost its presence in the local market.

The license will enable the Lankan unit of IOC to produce, blend, market and export its 'Servo' brand of products in the island, officials said.

Lankan IOC, which commands nearly 13 per cent of the country's lubricant market, has hopes to increase its presence in the local market when its new plant goes upstream in August, they said.

Read more,
http://www.headlinesindia.com/archive_html/26May2007_42205.html

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Japan under pressure over Sri Lanka aid

An international human rights group is lobbying Sri Lanka’s top donor Japan to exert greater pressure on the island nation to address spiralling violence.

But Tokyo said it has no plans for now to slash aid and follow the lead of Sri Lanka’s former colonial ruler Britain and Germany, which have frozen debt relief due to rights concerns.....

....“What we have asked Japan to do is take advantage of this position and its considerable leverage to firmly, strongly and regularly remind not just the government but other players involved of the obligations that they have to protect the civilians and human rights in general.”

Japan said, however, it was not considering slashing aid.

“Japan is not planning to reconsider its aid to Sri Lanka,” a foreign ministry official said.

He said that Tokyo’s peace envoy to Sri Lanka, former UN assistant secretary-general Yasushi Akashi, would return to the island on a new mission by early June.

India agrees to help Sri Lanka agri business

Visiting Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today pledged to help Sri Lanka boost its production and technical skills as the two sides agreed on collaborative efforts on bio-technology, hybrid seed development and post-harvest processing.

During the three-day visit of Pawar, which ended today, "it was agreed that India would assist in capacity building in Sri Lankan agriculture by enhancing the scope of training programs, scholarships, research projects and exchange of visits of farmers," a High Commission statement said.

It said the two sides also agreed on collaborative efforts on bio-technology, hybrid seed development and post harvest processing.

Pawar, who met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse yesterday, discussed the possibility of joint ventures too, the statement said.

Extracted from,
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200705252065.htm

Six More LTTE Child Soldiers Surrender to Army

Six more female LTTE child Soldiers who had been abducted by Tiger terrorists during recent past escaped from their captivity at un cleared THOPPIGALA area and surrendered to troops in SITTANDY detachment on Friday (25) during evening hours.

Those female child soldiers who are in the ages of 14, 16 and 17 years frustrated after being continuously harassed by their leaders hiding in NARAKAMULLA jungles in THOPPIGALA have escaped to SITTANDY seeking protection under Security Forces.

Extracted from,
http://www.army.lk/morenews.php?id=6039

Friday, May 25, 2007

over 40 LTTE cadres killed during last 72 hours

The LTTE terrorists continue to suffer heavy loses as the security forces at Northern, Eastern and Wanni fronts are further consolidating their defences using novel anti-terror tactics.

According to the latest information received by the radio monitoring elements of the security forces at least 40 LTTE cadres, including 7 very senior cadres were killed during last 72 hours.

According to the latest information the self styled "Colonel" Nagulan, the person in charge of LTTE's Charles Anthony band; "Major" Maniwannan Master, the LTTE's intelligence coordinator for Batticaloa and; LTTE female cadre Mala, a senior member of LTTE's Sothiya band were also among the dead LTTE cadres.

Two photographs taken of themselves with terror chief V. Prbakaran were also found with two dead LTTE cadres. The bodies were later handed over to the ICRC.

Meanwhile, naval officials rejected the LTTE's claim that 35 naval personnel were killed during the battle as weird exaggeration.

According to the naval sources only four naval personnel were killed and four others were injured.

‘Lanka’ Sunday edition temporarily suspends publication

The ‘Lanka’ newspaper Sunday edition has been temporarily suspended publication due to a financial crisis beyond its control, co-editors of the paper Tissa Nihal Wickramasinghe and Dharma Sri Kariyawasam announced in a joint statement issued yesterday.

The statement added that the financial crisis which occurred due to lack of large-scale capital investment adequate advertising and a printing press of its own aggravated due to the inflationary situation which occured in the country during the past few months.

However, since necessary steps were being taken to overcome this situation, the management has decided to resume publication of the paper soon.

LTTE had come so close to the Indian border to attack the Sri Lankan Navy

The Indian Navy has strengthened patrolling along the International Maritime Border Line in order to prevent any "spill-over impact" in the aftermath of LTTE's attack on a Sri Lankan naval base at Delft Island.

"The Navy has already moved its war ships towards the northern direction of the IMBL off Rameswaram coast," a top official of the IB told PTI.

The Delft Island is the nearest inhabited island from Rameswaram coast and just a quarter nautical mile from the border.

"A ship is moving from south towards north and we are closely watching the developments. Patrolling has been strengthened to prevent any spill-over impact (of yesterday's incident)," he said.

It was for the first time that LTTE had come so close to the Indian border to attack the Sri Lankan Navy, he said.

parliament in uproar over security situation

Sri Lanka's parliament was in uproar on Thursday as the main opposition demanded a debate on the island's security situation.

Parliamentary officials said the session was adjourned twice in the pre lunch period as the main opposition United National Party (UNP) asked that parliament have a debate on what they termed the country's grave security situation.

Ramalingam Chandrasekeran, the deputy chairman of committees (the third highest position in parliament) who was presiding parliament adjourned the sessions when the UNP and the government MPs started shouting.

Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe argued that holding a debate on the situation was an urgent matter.

But the Chief Government Whip Jeyaraj Fernandopulle argued that such a debate cannot be granted as the house was discussing another adjournment issue.

Trade between Pakistan, Sri Lanka to touch 1 bn dollar in next 5 years: High Commissioner for Pakistan

Bilateral trade between Pakistan and Sri Lanka is rapidly growing and will reach one billion dollar mark in the next five years, High commissioner for Pakistan to Sri Lanka Shahzad A. Chaudhry said.

Speaking at a programme organized by the National Chamber of Exporters in Colombo the other day, he said there is a sharp increase in bilateral trade after signing of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries in 2005.

According to a message received here, he said trade, which was around 35 million dollars before signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), now crossed 200 million dollar mark.