Paranthan fell to troops today following a surprising pre-dawn strike led by 2 Commando, 10GR etc. troops of the 58 Division. By this evening, the entire area was cleared.
Several successive waves of attackers, led by LTTE’s Kilinochchi Military in-charge Velavan was beaten back. The open terrain and Villu that lay between troops and the well defended LTTE fortifications were suddenly crossed in the darkness of the morning.
The last attack came this evening. 8 bodies of Tigers were recovered. The attackers were mainly from the Imran Pandian unit, which is led by Velavan.
With this latest defeat, Muhamalai will become untenable for the LTTE. Troops now have the opportunity to attack Kilinochchi from the north and the northeast. That town too is expected to fall in January.
2 Commando Regiment Spear heads Paranthan Attack
The Sri Lanka Army is within 700m of Paranthan junction. Paranthan junction is expected to fall within the next 24-72 hours.
The LTTE’s hold on the strategic Paranthan junction along the A9 is failing rapidly as 58 spearheaded by 2 Commando came upto 700m of the A-9 north of Paranthan junction this evening.
Meanwhile Tiger strength in Kilinochchi too is gradually being eased as cadres are being pulled back towards Mulaitivu. The Tigers new objective of protecting Mulaitivu is surprising as it reinforces Mullayaveli. It seems as if the LTTE is running out of time and ideas on which area to protect.
(Defence Wire)
Another historic victory: Paranthan falls
The Security Forces yesterday reached yet another historic victory in the Vanni liberation operation with Task Force I troops capturing the strategically important Paranthan town after cutting off the A-9 road from the North of Paranthan junction by yesterday evening, Army Commander Lt. General Sarath Fonseka told the Daily News last night.
The 57 Division operating in the Kilinochchi front also gained momentum in their battle as they entered the build up area in the Kilinochchi passing the Iranamadu junction from the West of A-9 road.
”Troops have already entered Paranthan and are short of only 100 meters to reach Paranthan junction. They will fully capture the Paranthan junction within the course of Wednesday night”, the Army Commander added.
“We have taken the control over the beach front from the North of Paranthan, completely cutting off the links the LTTE is having with the Jaffna front through A-9 road”, the Army Commander said.
The Army Commander said that the capture of Paranthan will lead to the total eradication of the LTTE from the remaining part of Vanni in the year 2009 which has been declared as the Year of Heroic Victory.
Paranthan is the most strategically important four way junction town, in the remaining areas held by the LTTE in Vanni and the North as it connects Pooneryn in the West, Mullaiitvu in the East, Kilinochchi in the South, and Jaffna and Muhamalai in the North to one main hub through B-69, A-35 and A-9 roads.
This is the second most important victory achieved by Task Force I, within one and half months as they captured Pooneryn on November 15, depriving the LTTE of the entire Western coast.
Heavy fighting erupted West of Paranthan front as Task Force I troops under the command of Brigadier Shavendra Silva confronted heavily with the LTTE during the advance towards Paranthan.
According to military sources more than 50 Tiger cadres were reportedly killed and more than 60 injured in the ensuing battle.
Troops have recovered bodies of the Tiger cadres in the vast stretch of paddy lands west of Paranthan.
As LTTE cadres were fleeing from the Paranthan front 13 civilians also surrendered to the Security Forces yesterday, military sources added. Whilst moving towards Paranthan, Task Force I troops also captured the entire earth bund in the Adampan village opening yet another gateway to Kilinochchi from the North.
The fall of Paranthan will also herald the fall of remaining Tiger strongholds Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu as troops of the 57 Division under the command of Major General Jagath Dias also advanced towards the Kilinochchi build up area after passing the Iranamadu junction from the West of A-9 road.
”The 57 Division troops are just short of two and half kilo meters from the Kilinochchi station”, the Commander said.
He said that the Security Forces are determined to eradicate LTTE terrorism fully from the country in the year 2009 and these victories reflect the possibility of achieving that victory soon.
”The LTTE will not exist until the year 2010. We are confident of eradicating LTTE fully in the year 2009”, the Army Commander said.
Paranthan LTTE garrison captured: Troops make headway at Wanni battles
The Paranthan LTTE garrison has been captured by the Task Force -1 troops today (Jan 01) early morning, following hours of bitter fighting ensued between troops and LTTE, military sources said. The fall of Paranthan marks the dominance of security forces at the township after a decade.
The battle for Paranthan began in the early hours on Tuesday (30) when the TF-1 armor, artillery and infantry battalions commenced launching a concerted assault on the garrison town while, Army forward domination elements took on the well fortified LTTE resistance positions during surprise maneuvers made behind enemy lines.
Troops have also cutoff the vital access routes towards Paranthan along the A-9 road from North and South, reportedly killing over 50 terrorists, while injuring twice as many numbers during the intense battles, military source said.
The Paranthan LTTE garrison is strategically located, approximately 4.5km North of Kilinochchi along the A-9 trunk route and on the southern sector of Elephant Pass, another LTTE foothold, according to ground troops.
Troops of the TF-1, commanded by Brigadier Shavendra Silva, entered the Paranthan built-up assisted with close combat air support of the SLAF jets and MI-24 helicopter gunships, Wednesday morning (Dec 31). LTTE resistances and counterattacks were outflanked by the intense military armour attacks and concentrated artillery and mortar fire, ground troops said. The fighting was fierce and prolonged for hours until terrorists were completely beaten by the determined soldiers, the sources added. LTTE fighting formations mainly from the Imran Pandiyan unit led by its ‘Kilinochchi-in-charge’, Velavan and Jerom had made successive attempts to gain lost ground only to be left with more casualties and damages, military sources said.
Unable to withstand the fury of the combined Army and Air force onslaught, LTTE terrorists withdrew from the town in total disarray. Having inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy, troops are now consolidating defences and advancing further east of the Paranthan junction, security sources added.
Fall of Paranthan would also open a gateway to the LTTE’s remaining defences at Vaddakkachchi, and Puthukkudiyiruppu areas on the A-35 road (Paranthan- Mullaittivu), defence observers asserted. Muhamalai in the southern peninsular neck will also be untenable for the LTTE, the sources pointed out.
The fall of Paranthan, the well-fortified LTTE garrison has isolated the southern periphery of the Elephant Pass LTTE foothold and has also exposed the LTTE’s main fortification at Kilinochchi, defence observers further said.
The chemical factory was the hallmark of Paranthan, providing direct and indirect income to many locals. In 1986 SLA positioned a small administrative base at Paranthan, which was linked to the main base at Kilinochchi. LTTE disrupted civil administration in the area in early 1990s.
SLA liberated it from the LTTE grip during the ‘Sathjaya 1 & 2’ military campaign conducted on Sep, 1996. However, troops had to make a tactical withdrawal in September 1998″, Army sources said.
(Defence.lk)
Sri Lanka troops ‘seize key rebel town’
Sri Lankan troops on Thursday captured a key town from Tamil Tiger rebels in the island’s north, the defence ministry said, adding that the fall of the Tigers’ political capital was “imminent.”
After intense clashes that left at least 50 guerrillas dead, the fall of Paranthan, near the Tigers’ political capital Kilinochchi, effectively cut off the rebels’ main supply line to several other strongholds, the ministry said in a statement.
Army chief Sarath Fonseka said his forces were poised to retake control over Kilinochchi shortly as the air force stepped up attacks against pockets of rebel resistance.
“(The) fall of Kilinochchi is imminent within the next 48 hours,” Lieutenant General Fonseka was quoted as saying by the state-run Daily News service.
The defence ministry said fighting raged around Kilinochchi and that the air force had carried out at least eight bombing raids against suspected Tiger targets on Thursday.
At least 50 Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels have been killed and twice as many wounded in heavy fighting since Tuesday, the ministry added.
The ministry did not say if security forces suffered any casualties.
“Unable to withstand the fury of the combined army and air force onslaught, LTTE terrorists withdrew from the town in total disarray,” the ministry said.
Paranthan is about six kilometres (four miles) from Kilinochchi, which is the military’s main objective.
Military officials said government forces were heading toward Kilinochchi following the success at Paranthan, which had been under rebel control for 10 years.
“LTTE resistances and counter-attacks were outflanked by the intense military armour attacks and concentrated artillery and mortar fire,” the defence ministry said.
“The fighting was fierce and prolonged for hours until terrorists were completely beaten by the determined soldiers.”
The Tigers made no comment on the military’s claims, but in a statement on Wednesday night said four civilians were killed and 18 wounded in two air raids inside areas they held.
The guerrillas have vowed to defend their political base after the military announced it intended to capture Kilinochchi and dismantle the de facto state run by the separatist movement.
The Tigers lost strongholds in the east of the island last year, since when they have been steadily on the retreat in the north.
Soldiers have also stepped up pressure on the LTTE’s military base in the northeastern town of Mullaittivu.
President Mahinda Rajapakse on Thursday declared that 2009 would be “the year of heroic victory” over the rebels.
The latest fighting came as a government ultimatum — designed to allow 300,000 civilians in areas under their control to leave and seek shelter in government-held areas — expired on Wednesday.
Rajapakse announced last week that he would re-impose a formal ban on the Tamil Tigers if civilians were not allowed to leave by December 31.
However, any ban would be largely symbolic given the scale of the current military offensive against the LTTE.
An original ban was lifted in September 2002 ahead of an Oslo-backed peace process, which collapsed when Rajapakse pulled out of the truce last January.
The Tigers have been waging a long campaign for independence for Sri Lanka’s minority Tamil community. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the violence since 1972, making it Asia’s longest running ethnic conflict.
(AFP)
Sri Lanka troops say capture Tiger-held town
Sri Lankan troops took control of the town of Paranthan in THE far north following heavy fighting with Tamil Tiger rebels, the military said on Thursday.
The capture of Paranthan on Wednesday from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) came as fighting around Kilinochchi, the de facto capital of the rebels, intensified. Paranthan controls a key land route to rebel strongholds in northern Jaffna peninsula.
“Troops completely captured Paranthan town, which is a strategic move and will cut off the main supply route to Elephant Pass,” said military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, referring to the rebels’ front line in the south of Jaffna peninsula.
“This also makes LTTE’s fantasy capitol of Eelam Kilinochchi, more vulnerable,” Nanayakkara said.
Sri Lanka’ military has been closing in on Kilinochchi since September. Over the past month, it has been assaulting the Tigers’ defences encircling the town and both sides have claimed to have inflicted ever higher death tolls on the other.
The LTTE had no immediate comment. It is nearly impossible to verify battlefield claims since both the government and the LTTE block independent media access to the war zone, and have repeatedly distorted figures to their advantage.
The LTTE started fighting the government in 1983. It says it is battling for the rights of minority Tamils in the face of mistreatment by successive governments led by the Sinhalese majority since Sri Lanka won independence from Britain in 1948.
(Reuters)
Sri Lanka troops seize key rebel town: military
Sri Lankan troops on Thursday captured a key town from Tamil Tiger rebels in the island’s north after intense clashes that left at least 50 guerrillas dead, the defence ministry said.
The fall of Paranthan, near the Tigers’ political capital Kilinochchi, has effectively cut off the rebels’ main supply line to several other strongholds, the ministry said in a statement.
At least 50 Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels have been killed and twice as many wounded in heavy fighting since Tuesday, it added.
The ministry did not say if security forces suffered any casualties.
“Unable to withstand the fury of the combined army and air force onslaught, LTTE terrorists withdrew from the town in total disarray,” the ministry said.
Paranthan is about six kilometres (four miles) from Kilinochchi, which is the military’s main objective.
Military officials said government forces were heading toward Kilinochchi following the success at Paranthan, which had been under rebel control for 10 years.
“LTTE resistances and counter-attacks were outflanked by the intense military armour attacks and concentrated artillery and mortar fire,” the defence ministry said.
“The fighting was fierce and prolonged for hours until terrorists were completely beaten by the determined soldiers.”
The Tigers made no comment on the military’s claims, but in a statement on Wednesday night said that four civilians were killed and 18 wounded in two air raids inside areas they held.
The guerrillas have vowed to defend their political base after the military announced it intended to capture Kilinochchi and dismantle the de facto state run by the separatist movement.
The Tigers lost strongholds in the east of the island last year, since when they have been steadily on the retreat in the north.
Soldiers have also stepped up pressure on the LTTE’s military base in the northeastern town of Mullaittivu.
The latest fighting came as a government ultimatum to the Tigers — designed to allow 300,000 civilians in areas under their control to leave and seek shelter in government-held areas — expired on Wednesday.
President Mahinda Rajapakse announced last week that he would re-impose a formal ban on the Tamil Tigers if civilians were not allowed the freedom to leave by December 31.
However, any ban would be largely symbolic given the scale of the current military offensive against the LTTE.
An original ban was lifted in September 2002 ahead of an Oslo-backed peace process, which collapsed when Rajapakse pulled out of the truce last January.
The Tigers have not formally responded to the government’s ultimatum.
The group has been waging a long campaign for independence for Sri Lanka’s minority Tamil community. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the violence since 1972, making it Asia’s longest running ethnic conflict.
(AFP)
Sri Lanka Army captures Paranthan
After days of fierce fighting, the Sri Lanka Army infantry units have moved into Paranthan. Remaining LTTE resistance in the area was crushed in a pre dawn offensive spearheaded by commando units of the 2 commando regiment and special infantry (SI) formations of the 58 division. As of this moment, the entire Paranthan junction and the nearby area is under the complete control of the army.
Paranthan is perhaps the most strategically important area captured by the army during recent times. LTTE’s land based supply routes from their stronghold in Mullaithiv to Elephant pass, Kilali, Nagarkovil and Muhamalai have now been effectively cut off. This also opens another front for the army to advance on Kilinochchi – Paranthan is located around 4km north of the besiged town.
Meanwhile the Sri Lanka Air Force has been flying several aerial sorties per day to aid the advancing ground forces. Last evening, before SLA’s final push for Paranthan was made, SLAF jets and gunships devastated LTTE positions south and east of Paranthan junction in 4 different bombing raids. Last week however, an SLAF Mi-24 helicopter gunship suffered damage due to .50 caliber gunfire (aka five-zero) while providing close air support for advancing SLA troops in Mulliaweli, Mullaithiv. The gunship continued to destroy LTTE bunkers amidst cheers from SLA units on the ground. It completely destroyed part of the LTTE defence line before the pilot had to return to base due to damages caused to the rotor and hull. Although the gunship was hit by close to twenty 0.50 cal rounds, it’s in repairable condition.
(Defence Net)
Sri Lanka captures key Tamil Tiger town
The Sri Lankan military has taken control of a key Tamil Tiger town, cutting off the supply line to rebel troops and bringing it a crucial step closer to capturing the rebel stronghold of Kilinochchi, the defence ministry claims.
At least 50 rebels were killed and twice as many wounded in heavy fighting around Paranthan said the ministry. It gave no figures on casualties among the government troops.
The capture of Paranthan, just four miles from Kilinochchi, the rebels’ administrative centre which lies 210 miles north of Columbo, the capital, is a vital step forward for the government.
Kilinochchi is the capital of a parallel state that the rebels, who are classified as a terrorist organisation by the US and the EU, have fought to establish to protect Sri Lanka’s Tamil minority from a Government dominated by the ethnic Sinhalese majority.
Its loss would be a devastating blow to the rebels and would mean the government could claim victory in the bloody civil war that has riven the country for 25 years and left over 700,000 dead.
“Unable to withstand the fury of the combined army and air force onslaught, LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) terrorists withdrew from the town in total disarray,” the ministry said.
“The fighting was fierce and prolonged for hours until terrorists were completely beaten by the determined soldiers,” it added.
The Tigers’ long and violent campaign for an ethnic stronghold has begun to weaken over the last year. After losing strongholds in the east of the island they have been effectively in retreat in the north..
Soldiers have also stepped up pressure on the Tigers’ military base in the northeastern town of Mullaittivu.
The latest fighting came as a government ultimatum to the Tigers – designed to allow 300,000 civilians in areas under their control to leave and seek shelter in government-held areas – expired on Wednesday.
President Mahinda Rajapakse announced last week that he would re-impose a formal ban on the Tamil Tigers if civilians were not allowed the freedom to leave by December 31.
An original ban was lifted in September 2002 ahead of an Oslo-backed peace process, which collapsed when MrRajapakse pulled out of the truce last January.
The Tigers have not formally responded to the government’s ultimatum.
(TimesOnline)
Army closing in on Paranthan
As the deadline set by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to the LTTE to either allow civilians cross over to the government-controlled territory by dawn of 2009 or face ban approached, the military on Wednesday claimed to be on the verge of capturing the Paranthan town in Kilinochchi district.
The Defence Ministry said here troops were on the “verge of scoring another historic victory by liberating the strategically located” Paranthan town. It said they gained total control over the Thadduwankoddy and Komarikudakulam villages.
“Troops while advancing towards Paranthan had several confrontations with the terrorist in the area South of B-69 [Pooneryn — Paranthan] road during daytime. Heavy confrontations were reported around 9.30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. resulting severe damages to the terrorists.”
Separately, the Air Force claimed to have made “successive ground-support air assaults at identified LTTE resistance positions”.
In a statement posted on its website, the LTTE alleged that the aerial attack on Chellaihkadai Junction in Murasumoddai in Kilinochchi killed four and injured 15 civilians.
The Tigers said another attack on the same spot injured three more civilians.
(The Hindu)
Air raids target LTTE positions in Paranthan, Kilinochchi
Meanwhile in the northern front, Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) flew 5 bombing sorties on LTTE targets in Paranthan and Kilinochchi. The air sorties were made as ground troops inching closer to Paranthan continued to face heavy resistance from LTTE cadres. Two of the sorties were flown in the morning, two in the afternoon and then another one in the evening. Exact LTTE casualties in these aerial raids are not available as of now. Despite LTTE resistance, SLA units have now advanced up to 2.5km from Paranthan junction.
Meanwhile the LTTE has handed over 17 bodies of SLA soldiers fallen in Mullaithiv battles today. Around 30 soldiers from the army’s 59 division were killed in fierce fighting at location 5-6km south of Mullaithiv town on the 27th.
In other news around 250 Police Special Task Force (STF) personnel passed out after completing training today. The passing out parade was held at Katukurunda STF training base.
(Defence Net)
SLAF jets, helicopter gunships raid LTTE positions at Paranthan-Kilinochchi
SLAF fighter jets, MI-24 helicopter gunships made successive ground-support air assaults at identified LTTE resistance positions and mobile units in general area Paranthan, today (Dec 31).
The air strikes were carried out since 12.30p.m, Air Force Spokesperson Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara said. At 12.30p.m, MI-24 helicopter gunships made initial attacks at LTTE, followed by 2 consecutive raids East and South of the Paranthan junction at 12.45p.m., and 2.45p.m, respectively.
The raids were concentrated at LTTE resistance positions while another attack was carried out at an LTTE command post and 2 vehicles fitted with anti-air craft guns in the Paranthan junction. The command post was destroyed along with a vehicle Spokesperson, Wing Commander Nanayakkara said, adding that the other vehicle was also damaged in the air strike.
Sri Lanka says it is about to seize rebel capital
Sri Lankan forces captured a key crossroads from Tamil Tiger rebels in the north Thursday and will seize the guerrillas’ de facto capital within two days, the military said.
The fall of Kilinochchi would be devastating to the separatist group, which has been forced out of much of its territory in the north of the Indian Ocean island nation amid a renewed government offensive in recent months. President Mahinda Rajapaksa has promised to crush the rebel group and end the nation’s 25-year-old civil war this year.
Senior officials have said repeatedly over the past two months that Kilinochchi would fall soon, but troops became bogged down by heavy rains and fierce rebel resistance. The town has been in rebel hands for about a decade.
Military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said Thursday that the capture of the strategic Paranthan junction earlier in the day — after about six weeks of fighting — left troops about a mile (two kilometers) from the town on both the north and the south.
“Kilinochchi will fall within the next 48 hours,” he said.
The rebels could not immediately be reached for comment. But Tamil Tiger political leader Balisingham Nadesan told The Associated Press on Tuesday that they began as a guerrilla group and would be able to keep fighting even if they lost much of the territory they controlled in the north.
“We are used to all types of wars,” he said.
The government drove the rebels out of their strongholds in the east in 2007 and forced them out of much of their de facto state in the north last year.
The rebels have fought since 1983 to create an independent homeland for the minority Tamils, who have suffered decades of marginalization by successive governments controlled by the Sinhalese majority. The conflict has killed more than 70,000 people.
Infantry troops entered Paranthan on Wednesday with air support from jets and attack helicopters and fought close-range battles for a day to beat back rebel resistance, the military said in a statement.
“Unable to withstand the fury of the combined army and air force onslaught, LTTE terrorists withdrew from the town in total disarray,” the statement said, using the acronym of the rebels’ formal name, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
The fighting killed 50 rebels and four soldiers, Nanayakkara said.
In addition to opening another front in the battle for Kilinochchi, the fall of Paranthan also isolates a rebel stronghold at Elephant Pass to the north and allows soldiers to march into rebel territory to the northeast, he said.
Soldiers also captured Iranamadu junction south of Kilinochchi on Thursday, Nanayakkara said, saying it would further aid troops in their battle for the town. He did not give casualty details.
Meanwhile, the rebel-affiliated TamilNet Web site reported that the air force bombed rebel-held Murasumoddai village for a second day Thursday, killing five civilians, while five others died in air raids Wednesday.
Another 25 civilians were wounded and taken to hospitals after Thursday’s attacks, the report said. Nanayakkara denied that the air force bombed civilians, saying only rebels are targeted.
The latest government offensives have forced the rebels to abandon territory and retreat into an increasingly shrinking area in the northeast.
It is difficult to verify battle accounts or the size of the remaining rebel territory because reporters are barred from the war zone. Both the government and rebels are known to exaggerate enemy casualties and underreport their own losses.
Separately Thursday, a roadside bomb blast blamed on the rebels killed two policemen on a foot patrol in the eastern region, the military said.
( Associated Press)
Sri Lanka says poised to take rebel capital
Sri Lankan troops were poised to enter the de facto capital of the Tamil Tigers after capturing strategic areas around the town following heavy fighting with the rebels, the military said on Thursday.
Government troops captured Iranamadu junction, south of the rebels’ self-proclaimed capital of Kilinochchi, and Paranthan town to the north, from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the military said.
The capture of both Iranamadu Junction and Paranthan will pave the way for government troops to move into the rebel capital for the first time in more than a decade, it said.
“The 57th division troops today captured Iranamadu junction,” said military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara hours after the military announced the capture of Paranthan, a key rebel-held town that controls a key land route to rebel strongholds in northern Jaffna peninsula.
The capture of the two towns represented the latest battlefield victories by the military which has vowed to defeat the Tigers in 2009 to end their over 25-year separatist campaign.
“Troops are moving in. There were heavy confrontations and terrorists were withdrawing with heavy casualties,” Nanayakkara said.
Elephant Pass, a key position at the neck of Jaffna peninsula, and Kilinochchi are now more vulnerable as the captured areas would cut off the main supply routes, Nanayakkara said.
Meanwhile the island nation’s Army Chief Sarath Fonseka said Kilinochchi will be captured within two days.
“The fall of Kilinochchi imminent within next 48 hours,” the state owned ‘Daily News’ quoted Sarath Fonseka, in its breaking news via a mobile text message.
The air force said fighter jets and M24 helicopters bombed three rebel positions, including a rebel command centre, on Thursday in support of the rapidly advancing ground troops.
Sri Lanka’s military has been closing in on Kilinochchi since September. Over the past month, it has been assaulting the Tiger defences encircling the town and both sides have claimed to have inflicted ever higher death tolls on the other.
The LTTE had no immediate comment, but the pro-rebel website www.tamilnet.com said air force bombing had killed civilians.
“Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bombers hit a civilian settlement … killing civilians and causing injuries to many,” the website said.
“At least four civilians were dead among the 25 rushed to hospital. Many wounded were still trapped in the site as Sri Lanka Army (SLA) launched artillery barrage on the settlement after the indiscriminate air strike.”
It is nearly impossible to verify battlefield claims since both the government and the LTTE block independent media access to the war zone, and have repeatedly distorted figures to their advantage.
The LTTE started fighting the government in 1983. It says it is battling for the rights of minority Tamils in the face of mistreatment by successive governments led by the Sinhalese majority since Sri Lanka won independence from Britain in 1948.
(Reuters)
Leave a comment