Six civilians killed in 24-hours, fear grips Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2006, 16:00 GMT]
"White van" squad allegedly operated by Sri Lanka Army, abducted a 19-year-old female, beat the victim to death and hung her Thursday night in Uduvil, Jaffna. The victim was the fiancee of a 23-year-old male who was abducted, shot into eyes and dumped in Innuvil Monday. Meanwhile, an eyewitness from the bar on Manipay Road in Jaffna, said Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were behind the killings at the bar where two youths from Punguduthivu were gunned down in execution style Thursday night. Another youth was killed in Anaikoddai, shot into his eyes. The other victims to die were a 28-year-old employee at a fuel station Thursday night in Kalviyankadu and a 25-year-old fisherman, Friday morning.

The 19-year-old Anishtan Raymond Antida, whose body was recovered in Uduvil Friday, is suspected to have been abducted by persons in a white van and beaten to death and hung, said sources from Inuvil and added that she was the fiancee of P. Rajkumar 23, a bakery staff, who was abducted by persons in a white van and shot into his eyes to death and dumped at Theatre Lane in Innuvil.

Thayanantahn Kesavan, 20, and Parameswaran Thushyanthan, 18, both from Pungudutivu islet, were gunned down in execution style by SLA troopers who entered the bar on Manipay Road in Jaffna where they were employed Thursday night. The soldiers forced into the liquor shop where they were sleeping and ordered them to the first floor and shot at them. The bodies of the youths are being kept in the Jaffna Teaching Hospital morgue.

Thurairasa Suthahar, 30, of Kokuvil, seriously injured in the shooting incident, is admitted to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital, medical sources said.

The dead body of another youth, Mylvaganam Satkunarathinam, 28, a resident of Kokuvil, abducted and shot into the eyes, was dumped by persons in a white van, at Aarukalmadam in Anaikoddai Friday morning.

Ratnasingam Prasanth, 26, an employee at the fuel station in Kalviankadu junction on the Jaffna Point Pedro road was shot dead Friday morning in execution style.

In Vadamaradchy, Kanmani Jeyatheeswaran, 25, from Punitha Nagar, Katkovalam, a fisherman who displaced from Nagarkovil, was gunned down Friday at 10:30 a.m. while he was cycling towards Point Pedro on Thumpalai Point-Pedro Road.

Another dead body, recently found lying unattended in Valigamam East, was identified as that of Thilakarasa Siluvaithasan, 31, of Kondavil, a father of three.

Jaffna remains terrorized amidst abductions, rape allegations and killings.