Eight killed in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 July 1998, 23:59 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) handed over the bodies of four fishermen with gunshot injuries to the Valaichchenai hospital, 32 km. north of Batticaloa, said ex-militant sources in Europe when contacted by TamilNet. The bodies had recovered by the SLA from the Kinnaiyadi lagoon Sunday morning, they said.

Kinniyadi is a village near Valaichenai town 30 km north of Batticaloa.

The bodies have been identified as of Thambipillai Kalirajah, 22, Vairamuthu Thangavadivel, 27, Pillayan Sellathurai, 20 and Kanapathipillai Thavaseelan, 22.

The Judicial Medical Officer, Dr. S.Thadchanamoorthy carried a post-mortem and bodies were handed over to the relatives of the fishermen after the coronary investigation.

The coroner in his report said that the cause of death in each case was gun shot injuries.

Local residents said they heard sounds of gunfire from the Kinnaiyadi Sri Lankan Army camp yesterday which lasted for nearly two hours from 11 p.m., and they believe the fishermen were killed due to army's gunfire, said the sources.

Meanwhile two Liberation Tigers and two civilians were killed in a confrontation between the Sri Lankan Police and the Tigers at the 'petrol station' junction at Karuvakkerni in the Batticaloa, said the ex-militant sources, quoting the police.