LTTE cadres, civilians attacked in Vaharai, one dead, three injured

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 August 2005, 09:03 GMT]
An LTTE cadre, Mr. Reagon, was killed and three persons including two civilians were injured when a group of Sri Lanka Army soldiers and paramilitary cadres, who had moved into the LTTE held area Kirimichchai in Vaharai from the SLA held Panichchankerni, shot at LTTE cadres and civilians, LTTE's Political Head in Batticaloa Mr. Ilanthirayan told TamilNet. The attack took place around 10:00 a.m. Tuesday morning. Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) officials in Batticaloa refused to provide any detail of their knowlegde of the incident. In the meantime, civilians close to Panichankerni SLA base witnessed a group of attackers with military fatigues enter the SLA base following the attack.

According to LTTE officials in Sampoor in Trincomalee, the attackers used claymore mine and shot at LTTE cadres.

Meanwhile, LTTE Peace Secretariat in a news release said that the Sri Lankan Armed forces had moved 500 meters into the LTTE administered area in Kirumichchai.

Batticaloa political office of the LTTE has filed a formal complaint to the SLMM district office in Batticaloa, LTTE Peace Secretariat said.

In the meantime, sources close to Sri Lanka Army, confirming their knowledge of the attack and refusing their invovlement, claimed to local reporters that seven LTTE cadres were killed and six cadres were injured in the attack.

Civilians in the area witnessed a group of attackers wearing military fatigues enter the Panichchankerni SLA base from the direction where the attack had taken place.

Kirimichchai is located 49 km. north of Batticaloa.