31 LTTE cadres, two soldiers killed in Lanka clashes

At least 31 LTTE cadres and two soldiers were killed in fierce clashes in Sri Lanka's embattled northern region where army captured a portion of the rebel-held territory, officials in Colombo said on Wednesday.

As many as ten LTTE cadres were killed in confrontations with security forces as troops brought under their control areas in Mullikkandal, Minnaniranchan and Marattikannadi in Mannar region, the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) said.

The army also said it had captured three square kms of area in north of Adampan in Mannar.

Another three Tiger rebels were killed in two different confrontations in Periyamadu in Vavuniya yesterday, the MCNS said.

While three rebels were shot dead in Nedunkandal in Mannar, two others were killed in Anandakulam in the region, the military said.

Two LTTE cadres were killed in Sirimullikulam in Mannar yesterday, the MCNS said, adding another rebel was gunned down in Weerapirayan area in the region.

At least three LTTE cadres were shot dead and 18 others injured in different incidents in Kiriibanwewa in northeast Welioya, the military said.

Separately, troops killed seven rebels and injured nine in confrontations in Welioya, the MCNS said, adding two soldiers also lost their lives.

Meanwhile, the Defence Ministry said at least 20 civilians fled from the LTTE-held areas in Mullaithivue and Malayanwadu and reached a Sri Lankan army point seeking protection.

"Security forces personnel have provided all the necessities for the escapees and steps have already been taken by the government officials to provide safe shelter for them," it said.

Source: hindustantimes

Karunanidhi, Vaiko protest attacks on Indian fishermen

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressing concern over the Sri Lankan navy repeatedly opening fire on Indian fishermen in the waters between the two countries. A copy of his letter was given to the media here by the chief minister’s office.

In his letter, Karunanidhi urged the union government to ensure that the “rights and privileges of the Indian fishermen to carry on their normal occupation of fishing in the waters of Katchatheevu (an island in Palk Strait)) must be recognised and restored”.

Reminding the government of the 1974 and 1976 agreements between India and Sri Lanka, Karunanidhi said, “Fishermen were allowed to dry their nets in Katchatheevu but were prohibited from fishing in Sri Lankan territorial waters around Katchatheevu following executive instructions”, which, he pointed out “did not flow from the two agreements”.

“…they were executive instructions and cannot supersede the provisions of the legally valid agreement entered into by the two countries”, Karunanidhi said.

The executive orders have caused a great deal of hardship to Indian fishermen over the years as their “traditional rights” in Katchatheevu have been denied them.

“Time and again our fishermen have been arrested, attacked and shot dead in these waters. Each one of these incidents has shocked the people of the state and rocked the legislative assembly,” the note said.

“I urge the Government of India to take necessary steps to protect the precious lives of Indian fishermen and also to ensure their livelihood,” Karunanidhi said in his letter.

MDMK general secretary Vaiko too wrote to the prime minister Tuesday, urging him to boycott the forthcoming SAARC meeting in Sri Lanka because of the attacks on ethnic Tamils in the neighbouring country.

Source: thaindian

Tamil Nadu govt. orders survey to detect property purchases by Lankan refugees

The Tamil Nadu government has ordered the revenue department to undertake a detailed account of movable and immovable properties owned by Sri Lankan refugees in the state.

As per the government policy, refugees should not be allowed to buy property in the country. But it was not followed, leading to complications in some localities.

An official told PTI the Central government has sent several circulars asking the officials to keep a watch on the purchase of properties by the refugees.

The officials of the Q-Branch and the revenue department would conduct an initial survey of the properties owned by the refugees, followed by a detailed survey which would cover vehicles also.

With the officials having the list of refugees staying inside and outside the camps, it should not be a problem to find out the purchases made by the refugees, officials said.

But if the properties had been bought outside the state or in the border areas, it would be a problem. The officials would approach the residential localities where the refugees were staying and find out if any purchase had been made.

The help of the sub-registrar office also had been sought to find out the details.

The details about workshops, industrial units etc owned by the refugees were also being collected. The properties included land, house sites, houses, two-wheelers and heavy vehicles.

Source: Hindu

Clashes Kill 18 In Northern Sri Lanka

At least 16 Tamil Tiger rebels and two security personnel were killed in fresh clashes in Sri Lanka's restive northern region, the military said on Sunday.

Sri Lankan troops on Saturday had several confrontations in the Navatkulama, Chiraddikulama, Palamodai, Mundimurippu, Navvi and Kurukkolkulam areas on the Vavuniya front, the defense ministry said.

One security personnel lost his life in a The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) booby trap suspected to have been set up by the rebels in Jaffna's in Kilaly area on Sunday morning, the ministry reportedly confirmed.

It was not possible to independently verify the military's claims because media are banned from the northern jungles where much of the fighting takes place.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels have been battling for an independent homeland since 1972 in an ethnic conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.

Source: AHN

Bomb detected on Kandy rail track

A bomb fixed to the rail track at Nawalayatenna on the Kandy-Matale line was detected and defused yesterday evening, Central Province Deputy Inspector General Kingsley Ekananyaka said.
He said the bomb, weighing 750 grams and containing C4 explosives, was found close to the place where a bomb exploded damaging the track last month.

Source: sundaytimes

ALSO:

The STF defused a 6kg claymore recovered by workers cleaning a cannal in Kettarama, Colombo this afternoon.

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28 Lankan fishermen held: India

Indian Coast Guard on Saturday caught 28 Sri Lankan fishermen for allegedly crossing into Indian waters and handed them over to the police here.

The fishermen were taken into custody by the Coastguard personnel of the vessel "Sagar" when they were fishing at 65 nautical miles from Kanyakumari in the exclusive economic zone of India around midnight last night, police said.

The Indian Coast Guard DIG Raghuvanshi ordered that the fishermen, who were fishing in six boats, be taken into custody, they said.

Police have arrested them, the sources said.

The boats were also handed over to police.

Source: Hindu

Air attack, 8 LTTE killed

Sri Lanka's military attacked Tamil Tiger rebel positions along the civil war's northern front lines by land and air Saturday, killing at least four guerrillas, the military said. Four other rebels were killed in clashes a day earlier, it said.

Air force helicopter gunships attacked a rebel gathering point in northern Mannar district to assist army troops fighting the rebels in the area, said air force spokesman Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara.

Nanayakkara did not give details about damage or casualties, but said the pilots hit their target.

Heavy fighting has been reported in Mannar in recent weeks.

In other fighting Saturday, army troops fired rocket-propelled grenades at a rebel bunker in northern Vavuniya district, killing four rebels, the military said in a statement.

Four other guerrillas were killed Friday in separate clashes in Welioya and Vavuniya districts, the military said. Nine government soldiers were wounded in the battles, it said.

Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan could not immediately be reached for comment.

It was not possible to independently verify the military's claims because journalists are banned from the northern jungles where much of the fighting takes place. Each side commonly exaggerates its enemy's casualties while playing down its own.

Fighting has escalated along the war's northern front lines since the government withdrew from a long-ignored cease-fire in January.

The government has pledged to capture the rebels' de facto state in the north and crush them by the end of the year.

The Tamil Tigers have fought since 1983 to create an independent homeland for minority Tamils, who have been marginalized by successive governments controlled by majority Sinhalese. More than 70,000 people have been killed.

Source: iht

India against military solution to Tamil ethnic problem

Capping a closely-guarded visit by a high powered Indian delegation that met Sri Lankan Presiden Mahinda Rajapaksa, India today said it was not in favour of a military solution to the Tamil ethnic problem.

"India hopes that Sri Lanka can find a peaceful solution to the (ethnic) conflict within the framework of a united Sri Lanka that is acceptable to all the communities. We hope there is no military solution to the conflict," a senior Indian official said at the end of the two-day visit here of the delegation led by National Security Adviser M K Narayanan.

The team, which also included Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and Defence Secretary Vijay Singh, met Rajapaksa and held detailed discussions for about an hour.

None of the visiting Indian officials met the press and a brief statement was read out to the Indian journalists.

There was intense speculation over the purpose of the visit especially with significance being attached to the presence of the Defence Secretary in the delegation.

The two sides are understood to have discussed security arrangements for the upcoming SAARC summit among other issues.

The meeting between Rajapaksa and the top Indian officials took place at the residence of the Sri Lankan President before the Indian team returned home.

According to sources, the Indian delegation yesterday met the Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Senior Adviser to the President Basil Rajapaksa and some Tamil leaders among others.

The visit of the Indian officials comes two days after Sri Lanka indicated its willingness to hold talks with the LTTE following a two-year gap, saying the outfit does represent a "fair amount" of Tamils

Source: ptinews

Sri Lanka threatens to nationalise Indian Oil

Sri Lanka has threatened to nationalise the local unit of Indian oil unless it reduces the retail price of diesel, local officials said on Friday.

Petroleum Minister AHM Fowzie said the government will take over the 160 fuel retail depots operated by Lanka IOC, the local subsidiary of India’s state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), unless it makes the reductions. Diesel is commonly used by public transport. “Steps could be taken to re-vest the filling stations given to the IOC,” the minister was quoted as saying in the state-run Daily News.

Sri Lanka sold a third of its petroleum distribution network to the IOC in 2003 as part of a move to end the monopoly on retail sales. While the state-owned Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) sells diesel at Rs110 (1.02 dollars) a litre, the IOC sells it at Rs130. The CPC diesel is subsidised by the state. The government argues more motorists are buying the subsidised diesel and as a result, increasing losses are incurred by the state.

Lanka IOC said they were not able to absorb losses by selling diesel at the same price as CPC. “The minister wrote to us, asking to reduce our diesel prices to the same (level) as CPC or face sanctions,” Lanka IOC MD said.

Source: thenews

Indian delegation led by NSA in Sri Lanka

A delegation of top Indian government officials including the National Security Advisor (NSA) MK Narayanan flew to Colombo in an apparently unscheduled visit on Friday, triggering speculation about the possible reasons behind it.

Accompanying Narayanan were Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and Defence Secretary Vijay Singh.While the High Commission of India said the visit was in connection with the upcoming SAARC summit beginning end-July, Sri Lankan officials said the trio was here to continue dialogue on issues of mutual interest. Neither Indian diplomats nor Lankan officials were ready to comment on the visit of the three most powerful bureaucrats in India.

But it was confirmed that they would be meeting President Mahinda Rajapakse on Saturday morning. It was also learnt that Narayanan, Menon and Singh met their counterparts in the Sri Lankan government on Friday evening.

The three, along with at least two other middle-level officials, arrived on a special flight from New Delhi around 11.30 a.m. An Indian High Commission official said: “They would carry out a detailed assessment of the agenda to be taken up during the SAARC summit. They will also discuss Indo-Sri Lankan relations. The visit has been undertaken because India attaches a lot of importance to Sri Lanka.”

Source: hindustantimes