Heavy fighting near Kilali, Mannar FDLs

 

Heavy fighting erupted between the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) ahead of forward defense lines in Kilali and Mannar, yesterday(24th) and today(25th).

Fighting in Kilali was triggered when the LTTE attempted to infiltrate SLA controlled territory in a pre dawn offensive. SLA soldiers deployed in the forward defense lines detected the LTTE advance while it was crossing the no-man’s-land and were able to stage a surprise counterattack. LTTE cadres, knowing that they were at a disadvantage, tried to return to their bunker line. However they received casualties while fleeing and at least 8 of their bunkers in FDL caught fire due to small arms fire from SLA soldiers and from artillery fire directed at their FDL from artillery bases in the region. Dead bodies of two LTTE cadres have been recovered by the army and another 10-15 bodies could be observed scattered in the no-man’s-land ahead of FDLs. Two SLA personnel were killed and 30 others were wounded in the incident. Most SLA casualties were due to LTTE artillery fire.
 
However army has stepped up small scale group based attacks on LTTE bunkers on FDLs. Soldeirs from 55th division (mostly from VIR- Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment) have had success in such attacks.The sole objective of these operations is to destroy as much LTTE assests as possible.LTTE has been pushed into a defensive stance in these areas. This is mainly due to small scale attacks on their bunker lines. Some of the operations were successful and some were not.

Worst damage SLA suffered from such a group based operation in these areas in recent times was when 55-2 soldiers stormed into one of LTTE main bunker lines. SLA were able to destroy 5 bunkers causing the cadres in them to pull back to second defence line and some got killed. However then the LTTE directed 152mm artillery at the just vacated bunkers causing injuries to 15 soldeirs who had overrun them.

 

Read Full Post »

Tamil Tigers call for international pressure on Sri Lanka

Tamil Tiger guerrillas called Tuesday for international pressure to be cranked up to force the Sri Lankan government to halt military operations and return to peace negotiations.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), commonly referred to as the Tamil Tigers, accused Colombo in a statement of pursuing a military campaign and committing human rights abuses.

The timing of the statement was intended to coincide with President Mahinda Rajapakse’s address to the United Nations in New York later Tuesday.

The LTTE wants the international community to push the Colombo administration to honour a 2002 ceasefire arranged by peace broker Norway. The truce is in tatters after an escalation of fighting since December 2005.

“Whereas the LTTE continued to respect and urge for a full implementation of the ceasefire agreement, the Rajapakse regime eventually embarked on its war of occupation,” the LTTE said.

“The government of Sri Lanka must end its deceptions, halt its military oppression, ethnic cleansing, and serious human rights violations, accept the aspirations of the Tamil people and come forward to find a resolution that is based on the right to self-determination of the Tamil people,” the statement said.

“The international community must rein in the government of Sri Lanka to bring it in line.”

It added military operations by Sri Lankan forces continued in the island’s north and east, but said that the LTTE “continued to restrain itself, confining only to defensive operations.”

The statement came a day after the Sri Lankan military said that at least 27 people, including 23 rebels, were killed in clashes over the weekend.

The fighting came despite an offer Sunday by the government’s top defence official to halt military action in exchange for a resumption of peace talks, which stalled last October.

Troops would not go on the offensive if Tamil rebels agreed to talks, defence ministry secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse told a newspaper amid pressure from the island’s key foreign backers to halt the carnage.

Rights groups accuse the government and Tamil rebels of extra-judicial killings and scores of disappearances of civilians and political activists.

More than 60,000 people have been killed in Sri Lanka’s long-running Tamil separatist campaign.

(http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070925/wl_asia_afp/srilankaunrestuneutigers_070925052638&printer=

1;_ylt=AkNZZwfhE3RXHDMDcC.1fVjuOrgF)

Read Full Post »

Operation in Mannar

The Army launched a limited-scale offensive utilizing the 58th Division on Monday. Small teams of infantry, also comprising Commandos, have advanced between 800 meters to one kilometer into enemy areas and have captured an LTTE bunker-line. The Army has so far recovered 13 bodies of LTTE cadres. Casualty figures of the troops stood at 20 wounded and 2 killed as of today. The operation is still continuing left of the Yoda Wewa in the area between Uylankulam and Vankalai. LTTE has deployed an assortment of troops to counter the offensive including the ‘Soothiya Regiment’ comprising around 150 female cadres.

(http://defencewire.blogspot.com/2007/09/operation-in-mannar.html)

Read Full Post »

Sri Lanka battles claim 27 lives: military

Heavy fighting between security forces and Tamil rebels in northern Sri Lanka has left at least 27 people dead, military officials said.

The LTTE lost at least 20 men in pre-dawn clashes Monday on the Jaffna peninsula, according to the defence ministry. Another three Tigers were killed in the Wanni region further south, it added.

Government troops were attempting to break into territory in Wanni where the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) run a mini-state.

The fighting also left two security personnel, including an officer, dead and 30 soldiers wounded on Sunday. Another two were killed and 15 wounded in Jaffna early Monday, officials said.

There was no immediate word from the LTTE about its losses, which could not be confirmed independently.

The pro-rebel Tamilnet.com website said both sides traded artillery fire in the Mannar district, part of the Wanni region.

“The Sri Lanka army had suffered casualties in a ground operation launched Sunday in Thampanai area (in the Wanni),” Tamilnet said without elaborating.

The clashes came after the government’s top defence official offered Sunday to halt military action in exchange for a resumption of peace talks stalled since last October.

Troops would not press ahead with an offensive if Tamil rebels agreed to talks, defence ministry secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse told a newspaper amid pressure from the island’s key foreign backers to halt the carnage.

“The decision (of war or peace) is theirs and I believe they wouldn’t reject this opportunity,” Rajapakse told the Sunday Island newspaper.

“We’ll not take advantage of the ground situation,” if the Tiger rebels agree to negotiate.

Rajapakse, who is also the president’s younger brother, made the comments after the United States urged Colombo to abandon a military drive.

There has been no reaction from the Tigers to Rajapakse’s offer of talks.

The ethnic conflict, in which the rebels are fighting for an independent homeland for the Tamil minority on the Sinhalese majority island, has claimed more than 60,000 lives since 1972.

(http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070924/wl_sthasia_afp/srilankaunrest_
070924111849&printer=1;_ylt=AixdTkHqG488Ejl5ldb6jTDuOrgF)

Read Full Post »