2ND LEAD

Ilanthirayan seriously wounded in SLA barrage

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 May 2009, 15:38 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) Military Spokesman Irasiah Punitharooban alias Ilanthirayan (Marshall) sustained heavy injuries in the latest artillery barrage by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in the early hours of Sunday, sources close to LTTE in Vanni told TamilNet.



After a long break, Ilanthirayan gave an interview to Australia Tamil Broadcasting Coorporation (ATBC) amidst shell blasts on Saturday where he referred to the deployment of heavy weapons by the SLA to attack the civilian zone. He also referred to the report by United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) surfaced on April 27th which confirmed the heavy use of artillery and aerial bombing of civilian targets with satellite imagery.

Commenting on Sea Tigers ability to defend, he said the Sri Lanka Navy had attempted land its troops last week but the attempt was defeated by the Sea Tigers. SLN sustained heavy casualties, including a high ranking officer, and lost 8 vessels in Sea Tiger counter attacks, he said.

When asked about LTTE's ability to strike back, Mr. Ilanthirayan had said that the Tigers retained offensive capability and said such operations would be carried out according to the strategic assessments by the LTTE leadership.

External Links:

ATBC:

ATBC interview with Ilanthirayan on 09 May 2009