Air Force warplanes destroy LTTE training facility and Radar post in Wanni

Sri Lanka Air Force fighter jets successfully carried out two bombing missions targeting two identified camps of LTTE terrorists located in Wanni region this morning (March 27). According to the defence sources the targets were a training facility and a Radar command post both located in Kilinochchi district.

Air Force Spokesman Wing Commander Andrew Wijesooriya speaking to defence.lk said that the first mission was launched around 6.25.a.m. targeting a training facility located inside a jungle patch at Kalmadhu, in Iranamadhu. According to the defence intelligence, the terrorists have also used the location as a marshalling point for the conscripts.

The second mission was launched at 6.35.a.m. targeting a Radar Command post located in the Vallaipadhu area, South of Poonaryn, said the Air Force spokesman. Meanwhile, defence intelligence revealed that the terrorists have been using the location to coordinate boat operations across the Gulf of Mannar. The location was a recently established one by the terrorists due to frequent air raids on the strategically important coastal belt in the Northwest of the Island, the sources further said.

According to Wing Commander Wijesooriya the targets have been positively identified through human intelligence and verified by air surveillance. The Kfir and F-7 fighter jets carried out the missions jointly and the targets were accurately hit the added citing the fighter pilots.

Extracted from,
http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080327_01

Be firm, Israel tells Colombo

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has reportedly told his Sri Lankan counterpart Rathnasiri Wickramanayake, presently on a four-day visit to Israel, not to “give in to terrorism because it will only bring destruction to your country,” a statement said.

It quoted Mr. Wickramanayake, Sri Lanka’s first Prime Minister to visit Israel, as saying in Jerusalem that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was maintaining strong relations with terrorist groups such as PKK and some affiliates of the dreaded Al-Qaeda. On the current situation in Sri Lanka, Mr. Wickramanayake said: “The black Tigers are responsible for suicide operations and have perfected suicide bombings and assassinations.

It is generally believed that they learnt it from some Palestinian groups.” Mr. Wickremanayake has held talks with Israeli President Shimon Peres, Defence Minister Ehud Barak, and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. He will also meet Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank.

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http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/27/stories/2008032755091800.htm

Pro-LTTE activists assault Lankan director in Chennai

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam supporters attacked a Sri Lankan film director in Chennai and prevented him from taking back prints of his film from a laboratory for allegedly portraying the banned outfit chief, V Prabhakaran, in a poor light.

The incident took place on Tuesday at Gemini Lab in Chennai where Lankan director Thushara Peiris had come to take prints of his film Prabhakaran , which shows the miseries of the people due to the civil war through the eyes of an escaped LTTE cadre.

S P Veerapandian, general secretary of Tamil nationalist party Dravida Iyakka Tamilar Peravai, S Vanniarasu Viduthalai Chiruthaikal and film director Seeman were among those who assaulted Peiris.

Extracted from,
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Pro LTTE Ram Doss wants Chennai SL office to be closed down

For re-publishing a collection of items that appeared in the Tamil Nadu media a Tamil Nadu based “human rights organization” called Manitham wants India ’s federal government in New Delhi to close down the Consul General office of Sri Lanka immediately.

The Executive Director of the “Manitham” (Man) Agni Subramaniam in an interview with the popular Tamil weekly magazine Kumudam said, the book issued by the Consul General’s office consisting of media reports from Tamil Nadu , “has created a stir among the supporters of Tamil Eelam in Tamil Nadu.”

Bringing it to the notice of Pattali Makkalai Katchi leader Dr. Ram Doss, who is an extremist leader of the Tamils, Agni, literally meaning Fire, told the magazine that the media reports carried in the book made the impression that Tamil people in Tamil Nadu are opposed to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

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http://www.sinhalaya.com/news/english/wmview.php?ArtID=15030

PNM against disarming Pillayan group

The Patriotic National Movement yesterday said disarming the Pillayan faction at this moment would make them targets of the LTTE and prevent the group from entering the democratic process.

Wimal Weerawansa told a press conference at the Library Services and Documentation Board Auditorium that the recent call to disarm them at this moment without helping them enter the democratic mainstream was a move against Tamils' aspirations.

He said certain elements are calling for the disarming of the group which would definitely result in them falling prey to LTTE.

The Government should encourage them to enter mainstream politics by giving the necessary impetus and gradually instilling in them faith in the democratic process. "We cannot disregard the fact that the Pillayan group is under the threat of LTTE. No other party engaged in democratic politics has faced a threat of such magnitude as the Pillayan group," Weerawansa said.

Referring to the forthcoming Provincial Councils Election, he said the Government has failed to conduct a census in the province which consisted of territories forcefully held by LTTE terrorists over a decade, before the Election was announced.

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http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/03/27/pol04.asp

SL create history in the Caribbean

Chaminda Vaas' double-strike just after lunch, sandwiched between the key scalps of half-centurions Dwayne Bravo and Ramnaresh Sarwan, and another from Muttiah Muralitharan on the stroke of tea left Sri Lanka needing four wickets to win their first Test in the Caribbean.

Bravo relished his first time opening the innings by scoring a fluent 83 and Sarwan's obdurate 72 gave West Indies hope of salvaging a draw but Sri Lanka came back hard to set up a tense final session. At 229 for 6 the hosts were battling the odds to pull off a great escape at the Providence Stadium.

West Indies began the final day facing a mountain to climb and Bravo and Sarwan took to it step by step. From the go it was evident they were playing for a draw; the first 15 overs yielded just 25 runs. Sarwan didn't score a boundary all session, reluctant to take any risks, and puttered along with tucks to the on side.

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http://content-sl.cricinfo.com/wivsl/content/

LTTE Ordeal at Omanthai with Escaped Fishermen; Three Dead & Five Rescued

A STRING OF INDISCRIMINATE Tiger terrorist fire attacks on a group of fleeing LTTE abducted and detained fisherfolk Wednesday (26) mid-noon in a jungle location, about 2 km to the east of OMANTHAI Entry/Exit point, claimed the lives of three of them and injured three more.

Troops stationed surrounding this Entry/Exit point managed to rescue five more, effectively responding to the enemy fire while that group of eleven Sinhalese detainees were on the flee, amidst a rain of Tiger bullets that were directed towards those escapees.

The story behind the tragedy records back to 10th February and 2nd March 2007 when LTTE Sea Tigers caught and abducted fourteen fishermen of KALPITIYA, NEGOMBO and TANGALLE areas while they were fishing some 20 nautical miles off KALPITIYA, PUTTALAM.

Tiger terrorists have at first taken those fishermen to ARIPPU by force. Later, terrorists have forced those abductees to undergo rigorous hard work as labourers after confining them to VISHWAMADU area in MULLAITIVU, but their determination to run away from the grip of LTTE terrorists never wavered, according to an escapee.

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http://www.army.lk/morenews.php?id=11898

Sri Lankan Air Force pounds rebel targets

The Air Force in Sri Lanka launched two separate air attacks at Tamil Tiger targets Wednesday morning in the north, said the Air Force.

Air Force spokesman Andrew Wijesooriya told the media that the first air raid was conducted around 10:15 a.m. (0445 GMT) using MI24 helicopters at two identified bases of the Liberation Tigers ofTamil Eelam (LTTE) at Alankulama and Kaliadanchan in the Mannar district.

Wijesooriya said the attack was undertaken as a ground support mission to the Army soldiers engaged in battles in the area.

The second air raid was carried out by fighter jets around 10:50 a.m. (0520 GMT) at a boat manufacturing facility of the LTTE inthe Vishwamadhukulama area in Kilinochchi, the spokesman said.

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One STF soldier killed 3 injured in LTTE claymore blast in Batticaloa

One soldier of Police Special Task Force (STF) was killed and 3 others suffered injuries when LTTE terrorists detonated a claymore mine at Thandiadi in Batticaloa this morning (March 26).

According to the defence sources in the area , the claymore blast was carried out targeting a foot patrol undertaken by the STF down the Valakalai- Thandiadi road around 9.a.m.

The injured have been admitted to general hospital Batticaloa. A search operation is in progress, the sources added.

Extracted from,
http://defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080326_05

Eleven More Tiger Corpses Delivered to ICRC

CORPSES OF ELEVEN TIGER CADRES, including six women cadres died during most recent offensives and clashes in MANNAR and WELIOYA were to be delivered to the ICRC officials Tuesday (25) afternoon at about 1.30 p.m. across the OMANTHE Entry/Exit point.

Many of those remains recovered from MANNAR area belonged to six women cadres and four males who perished in this week’s MANNAR area battles. The remaining one was from the WELIOYA sector. All those dead bodies were kept for delivery to the ICRC in MANNAR and PADAVIYA hospitals before they were removed to VAVUNIYA hospital this morning (25) after ICRC arrangements were finalized.

The ICRC at OMANTHE Entry/Exit point took over the remains for delivery to the LTTE in un-cleared areas.

Extracted from,
http://www.army.lk/morenews.php?id=11863

NEDUMARAN TO VISIT LONDON TO RAISE LTTE FUNDS

India’s pro-Tamil Tiger leader Pazha Nedumaran is scheduled to visit London to be engaged in fund raising activities of the proscribed terrorist group the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), sources close to Mari Amma Temple in Tooting London, said.

“Nedumaran is scheduled to address a gathering at the LTTE owned temple, March 29, but his visa has yet to be cleared by the British authorities,” the sources further indicated. The temple authorities admitted he is scheduled to speak but said his arrival cannot be confirmed as his visa is yet to be issued.

Golden Lambert and A.C.Shanthan , two accused who are out on bail on LTTE fund raising charges against them under Britain’s anti-terrorist laws are reportedly the main organizers of the Nedumaran fund raising event.

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http://www.lankaweb.com/news/items08/260308-4.html

Politics keeping Lanka from helping Tibet

A FREEDOM fighter, he was known as Tibet Jathika S Mahinda, though his original name was Tasilmgal. He came to Sri Lanka from the Sikkim-Tibet region in 1912 as a 14-year-old destitute.

He preferred to identify with Tibet instead of Sikkim because Tibet was better known among Sri Lankans. Ordained as a Buddhist monk of the Theravada tradition after his arrival in Sri Lanka, he mastered the local language and woke the sleeping Sinhala masses up by his powerful poetry which promised them hope and galvanised them into action. This monk from Tibet saw how the Sri Lankan culture and tradition were being swallowed by the fast-spreading western way of life and how the Sinhala Buddhists being converted to Christianity by missionaries from the West.

With his poetic idiom, S Mahinda, a socialist at heart, told the Sri Lankans in general and the Buddhists in particular that the local culture and the tradition were much richer and more meaningful than what was being imposed on them by the colonialists.

Tibet Jathika S Mahinda – meaning S Mahinda the Tibet national – was indeed a true Sri Lankan national hero at a time when our efforts to gain freedom, not by violent means but by negotiations with the Brits, were led by the West-aping men in top hats and tailcoats.

Read full article here,
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?

UNP Decide to contest for Eastern PC Polls

Sri Lanka's Main opposition United National Party (UNP) has decided to contest the Eastern Provincial Council Election to be held on May 10.

Working Committee of the party unanimously approved the party’s decision today. They also appointed a nomination board to coordinate the Eastern Provincial Council Election.

Ranil Wickranasinghe, the leader will discus with Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) and other parties, General Secretory, Tissa Atthanayaka said.

Party has also decided to urge government and election commissioner to disarm armed groups before nominating, Atthanayaka said to media.

UNP did not contested for Batticaloa mini Election.

Extracted from,
http://news.nidahasa.com/news.php?go=fullnews&newsid=515

Showcasing a success

ON the evening of March 11, heads of foreign missions based in Colombo received an invitation from the Foreign Ministry to gather at the office of Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama the following day at 11 a.m. for a briefing on the just-concluded local body elections in Batticaloa district. Similarly, members of the local and international press corps were called to his office for another briefing on the elections.

The invites raised several eyebrows. What has the Foreign Ministry got to do with the conduct of local body elections in just one of three eastern districts?

For the Mahinda Rajapaksa government and its Foreign Ministry, the Batticaloa elections constituted an extraordinary feat for more than one reason and deserved to be promoted as such.

The logic and objective of showcasing the Batticaloa elections to the international community is three-fold. First, the government succeeded in conducting the elections without any untoward incident in an area, parts of which were wrested from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) less than a year ago. Secondly, the government can take credit for bringing a section of the LTTE, the breakaway faction led by Vigyanamurthy Muralitharan alias ‘Col’ Karuna, now led by Pillian, into the political mainstream.

Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, it is a reflection of the commitment of the government to usher in democracy in the erstwhile LTTE-dominated areas and provide an idea of the shape of things to come in the East and eventually in the North, parts of which continue to be under the control of the Tigers.

Read the full article here,
http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/stories/20080411250704600.htm