SLA advance repulsed - LTTE

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 February 1998, 23:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers announced today in the Vanni that they stopped the advance of the SLA this morning from its positions in Karuppattamurippu four kilometers east of Mankulam towards the strategic junction of Mankulam, capturing arms and ammunition and twenty bodies of SLA soldiers who were killed in this fighting today.

The LTTE said that several hundred SLA soldiers were wounded in their attack and that they are making arrangements to hand over the bodies of the SLA soldiers killed in today's fighting to the ICRC.

The Tigers also said that they will be cremating a large number of decayed bodies of SLA soldiers killed in the fighting with due military honours today.

A large force of the SL army, according to them, had attempted to thrust out of its positions in karuppattamurippu towards Olumadu which is 3 kilomteres east of Mankulam, around 5.10 a.m. early this morning, backed by Mi 24 helicopter gun ships and artillery fire from the rear bases of Op.Jayasikurui.

Six Tigers were killed in the fighting this morning in Olumadu said the LTTE.

The following arms and ammunition were captured from the SLA by the troops of the Liberation Tigers in the fighting this morning according to the LTTE announcement in the Vanni this evening:

P.K LMG -1

A.K LMG -14

RPG -1

40 mm (grenade firing) pistols - 5

T-56/2 assault rifles - 12

T 56 assault rifles with stock - 3

medium rounds of ammunition - 10000

Night vision glasses - 1

AK magazine pouches - 3

A.K drum magazines (for LMGs) - 9

A.K assault rifle magazines - 80

The LTTE gave the names of the six Tigers who were killed in the fighting at

Olumadu as follows.

1. Isaimaran (Suntharalingam Kirupakaran, Jaffna)

2. Nellan (Krishnapillai Thurairajah, Jaffna)

3. Kulasekaram or Kumaravel (Nallathamby Suthakaran, Jaffna)

4. Kesavan or Sankaran (Selvarajah Thangara, Jaffna)

5. Uthayan (Thangarajah Sayanthakumar, Jaffna)

6. Siraivaasan or Alakarignan (Markandu Parameswaran, Jaffna)