Senior SLA Commander injured in LTTE sniper fire

[TamilNet, Sunday, 13 April 2008, 15:47 GMT]
Lt.Col.Jagath Ratnayake, Commander of the 4th Gemunu Watch division of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) responsible for the Forward Defense Lines (FDLs) at Muhamaalai was seriously injured by sniper fire of the Liberation Tigers, Sinhala daily Lankadeepa reported. The Commander was first transported by Military helicopter to Palaali Military Hospital, and later transferred to Colombo National Hospital, according to the same paper.

Sniper fire that hit Lt.Col. Ratnayake originated from a location 500m distance from where the Commander was standing, according to reports.

This incident follows the April 8th sniper fire incident that injured Brigadier Kamal Gunaratne, the Commander of SLA 55th Division. Brigadier Gunaratne was hit by snipers from within LTTE controled area near the Muhamaalai FDL while the Brigadier was engaged in war preparations.