Tigers train guns on Valikamam SLA

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 September 2000, 18:39 GMT]
Long range artillery fired by the Liberation Tigers fell in the Sri Lanka army's high security zone in the general area of Punnaalaikadduvan, 13 kilometers northof Jaffna town. SLA sources said that there was no damage but added that the ability of the Tigers to reach so far inside the Valikamam division has caused some concern because Punnailaikadduvan is near Palaly and the main base of the 51 division.
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Tigers sink FAC in Kalpity

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 September 2000, 12:33 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers attacked and sank an Israelai built Dvora Fast Attack Craft (FAC) of the Sri Lanka Navy Saturday afternoon in the sea off Kalpity on the northwestern coast of the island, security sources said.
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Tigers move towards SLA's Thenmaradchi MSR

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 September 2000, 12:30 GMT]
Battle units of the Liberation Tigers, having overwhelmed Sri Lanka Army positions on the supply route linking the SLA garrison in Nagar Kovil with the main military base in Eluthumadduval, have crossed the road in the direction of the general area between Mirusuvil and Varani, civilians who fled the war zone Saturday told TamilNet. The Sri Lanka army Saturday allowed about 1500 civilians fleeing the war zone in Jaffna's southern sector to leave Thenmaradchi according to TamilNet's Vadamaradchi correspondent.
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Tigers ask civilians to leave war zone

[TamilNet, Friday, 29 September 2000, 03:35 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers Friday asked civilians living in the army controlled sector of the Thenmaradchi division of Jaffna to leave their villages and find safety in the Vadamaradchi division of the peninsula according to the morning news broadcast of the Voice of Tigers.
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Tigers interdict Kilali supply route

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 September 2000, 16:23 GMT]
The supply route to the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the Sri Lanka Navy base at Kilali from Eluthumadduval is unusable due to the fighting in the area sources in Jaffna said Thursday night. A Sri Lanka army official in Jaffna, however, said that Kilali is now linked to the A9 highway by an alternative road from Mirusuvil; and that the army and the SLN's Special Boat Squadron (SBS) are resisting assaults by the troops of the Liberation Tigers on their positions at Kilali.
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Fighting close to SLA garrisons

[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 September 2000, 06:37 GMT]
Fighting raged close to the defence perimeters of the Sri Lanka army bases in Eluthumadduval and Kilali through the early hours of Thursday morning as troops of the Liberation Tigers that had overwhelmed several layers of the SLA's forward defence localities in this sector pressed on with their multi-pronged assault. The commanders of the SLA, Sri Lanka Air Force and Navy flew to Jaffna to co-ordinate efforts to re-organise defences and to regain some of the key forward defence localities captured by the Tigers Tuesday.
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Tigers launch Unceasing Waves 4

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 September 2000, 17:01 GMT]
Over 150 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops have been killed and 500 wounded in heavy fighting since the LTTE launched Operation Unceasing Waves 4 against SLA forces in the Killali-Muhamalai-Nagar Kovil axis Tuesday night, the organization said in a statement from its London offices Wednesday. LTTE fighters have advanced 3kms into SLA-held territory and are poised to attack SLA bases complexes at Kilali and Eluthumadduval, the statement said, adding nine Tigers have also been killed. Supply lines to the SLA base at Nagar Koil have been cut off, the Tigers said.
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Heavy fighting continues in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 September 2000, 12:32 GMT]
Fighting continued Wednesday between the Liberation Tigers and the Sri Lanka army at Eluthumadduval in the Jaffna peninsula. Military sources in Jaffna said that troops are still attempting to repulse Tiger units that overwhelmed some forward positions of the SLA in the Eluthumadduval-Muhamaalai sector Tuesday night. Civilians attempting to leave the northern Thenmaradchchi sector via the Kodikamam-Nelliyadi road to Vadamaratchchi were stopped by troops on the only SLA-held road out of the region.
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Claymore kills nine soldiers

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 September 2000, 18:04 GMT]
Nine Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed when the tractor in which they were travelling was hit by a powerful claymore mine blast north of Omanthai, around 7.30 p.m. Tuesday, security sources in Vavuniya said. One soldier was wounded.
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Heavy fighting reported in Eluthumadduval

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 September 2000, 14:44 GMT]
Fighting is reported between Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops and the Liberation Tigers in the Eluthumadduval-Nagar Kovil axis along the lines held by the SLA. Sources said clashes began around 4pm Tuesday
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Fighting in Nagar Kovil

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 September 2000, 12:42 GMT]
Fighting has been reported between the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the Liberation Tigers in Nagar Kovil on the southeastern coast of Jaffna since Tuesday afternoon.
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PA chief perpetrator of polls violence- watchdog

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 September 2000, 12:06 GMT]
An independent body monitoring election violence in Sri Lanka said that the ruling party was the alleged perpetrator of 368 incidents, including arson and thuggery. According to a press release Tuesday by the Center for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), the Police have acted in a partisan manner in favour of ruling People's Alliance candidates in the districts of Puttalam, Kurunagala, Moneragala, Gampaha and Kandy and that a Police officer had attempted to take action against ruling party supporters has been transferred from his post.
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SLA offensive near Chavakachcheri

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 September 2000, 06:53 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army launched another operation to expand its area of control northwest of Chavakachcheri from the early hours of the morning around 1.30 a.m. military sources in Jaffna said.
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Unitary state serious impediment - TULF

[TamilNet, Monday, 25 September 2000, 02:06 GMT]
The Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) in its election manifesto released Sunday said "the unitary character of the [Sri Lankan] state continued to be a serious impediment to the effective sharing of power" and that "what has been now proposed cannot be an effective or final solution to the Tamil question." The party also called for the government to negotiate with the Liberation Tigers with third party mediation. It also said it had "effectively contributed to sustaining their interests and involvement" of the international community in Sri Lanka.
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SLA assaults Jaffna journalist

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 September 2000, 12:54 GMT]
A journalist working for the Jaffna daily, Valampuri, was beaten up by Sri Lanka army soldiers Saturday evening near the scene of a fire in a paint shop in Nelliyadi town. More than fifteen civilians were also assaulted by the soldiers. The journalist, Velupillai Thavachelvam, said that he went to see the burning shop with the permission of the Police.
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"We pleaded but Navy kept firing"- survivor

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 September 2000, 12:53 GMT]
"We were fishing after a heavy thunder shower when about ten Sri Lanka Navy boats approached and opened fire on us. We screamed that we were fishermen and pleaded with them to stop shooting. But the Navy surrounded our boats and continued to fire on us. So we jumped in the sea to save our lives" said Punchi Singho, a Sinhala fishermen who survived the SLN attack in the Trincomalee bay Friday night. Two Sinhala fishermen who were caught in the attack are still missing, Police sources in the eastern port town said.
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PM ignorant of Jaffna predicament- SLFP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 September 2000, 18:27 GMT]
"The Prime Minister does not know much about the Jaffna situation" said the chief organiser of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party in Jaffna, responding to a question about the hawkish pronouncements of Mr. Ratnasiri Wickremanayaka during a press conference in the northern town Saturday.
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Two Mannar fishermen shot by SLA

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 September 2000, 12:46 GMT]
Two fishermen were shot dead by the Sri Lanka army on the coast near Mannar town Friday night around 10.30 p.m. The fishermen, K. Thangarajah, 47, and N.Satheesh, 21, were walking towards their boats on the Periyakadai beach when an SLA unit in ambush had opened fire on them, killing them on the spot.
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Seven fishermen killed in Navy attack

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 September 2000, 09:56 GMT]
(Correction) At least seven fishermen were killed and seventeen were injured Friday night around 11.30 when the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) gunboats opened fire on their boats in the bay Trincomalee. The bodies of six fishermen, four Sinhalese and two Tamils, have been recovered so far from the sea.
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Ministerial Swearing-in Postponed

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2000, 21:44 GMT]
The swearing in ceremony of Mr.Rauf Hakeem, co-leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, as a Cabinet Minister scheduled to be held Friday morning has been put off for Monday as the party leadership failed to receive official intimation from the Presidential Secretariat. SLMC sources said that this was due to internal squabbling over the ministerial posting.
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PA propaganda through state media challenged

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2000, 21:22 GMT]
The Court of Appeal Friday refused to issue interim injunction to prevent the People's Alliance from using state controlled TV and radio for election propaganda. The General Secretary of the United National Party Mr.Gamini Atukorale filed a petition seeking the Court of Appeal to issue interim injunction preventing the ruling People's Alliance from using the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) and the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC) for its election propaganda. This petition came up for inquiry before Mr.Upali de Z Gunawardane, Appeal Court Judge today.
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"UNP,PA assaulted me"-state media reporter

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2000, 21:12 GMT]
A reporter aligned to the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) claimed Friday that he was assaulted by supporters of the People's Alliance and the opposition United National Party in the Muslim town of Kattankudy, five kilometers south of Batticaloa. The SLMC is one of the chief coalition partners of the PA.
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Judge questions medical reports on torture victims

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2000, 16:53 GMT]
The Vavuniya district judge M.Ilancheliyan said that doctors in the northern border town should not disgrace the medical profession by their unbecoming conduct. He said that although doctors at the Vavuniya hospital claimed in their reports that nothing was found wrong with persons arrested and held by the Police and the Sri Lanka army whom they had examined, cigarette burns and contusions due to severe assault were clearly discernible on the suspects bodies when they were asked to remove their shirts during the proceedings in the court.
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Tigers release artillery pictures

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2000, 12:00 GMT]
The Tamil Guardian newspaper this week published photographs of the Liberation Tigers' captured 152mm howitzers along with pictures of Operation Unceasing Waves 3, including one of the LTTE flag being raised over the overrun Sri Lanka Army (SLA) base at Elephant Pass in April.
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Two-third majority no hurdle to pass new constitution - PM

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2000, 17:44 GMT]
The new People's Alliance (PA) government will abolish the executive presidential system and will introduce the new constitution even without a two-third majority, said Prime Minister (PM) Ratnasiri Wickremanayake in a press briefing today.
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PTA detainess released

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2000, 14:52 GMT]
Three youths who were arrested by the Sri Lanka Army soldiers and detained for nearly one year under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) were released by the Batticaloa High Court on Wednesday, while it sentenced another youth to 6 months rigorous imprisonment.
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Court declares TULF list "invalid"

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 September 2000, 15:40 GMT]
The Court of Appeal has declared that the nomination list submitted by the Tamil United Liberation Front to contest the Digamadulla (Ampara) electoral district invalid.
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Shelling disrupts body transfer

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 September 2000, 15:06 GMT]
The International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) called off the transfer of the bodies of 37 Liberation Tigers Tuesday at Neerveli, north east of Jaffna town when the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired shells close to the point of transfer.
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23 soldiers killed in LTTE ambush

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 September 2000, 13:15 GMT]
Twenty-three Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers, including 2 officers were killed and another wounded when the Liberation Tigers ambushed a military vehicle near Wilgampura, 11 km. northeast of Trincomalee town, around 3.30 p.m.Tuesday, security sources said.
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Three killed in Kalmunai bomb

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2000, 16:07 GMT]
Two police officers and an informant were killed when a bomb went off in Kalmunai town around 3.30 p.m. Monday. The explosion occurred as a bomb disposal unit from the Special Task Force (STF) was about to de-activate the explosive devise concealed in a van. Seven policemen were also wounded in the blast said sources.
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Heavy casualties in Jaffna battle

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2000, 12:24 GMT]
A Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troop column in Chavakachcheri suffered heavy casualties when it was intercepted and attacked by the Liberation Tigers Sunday, sources in Jaffna said. The SLA has withdrawn to Sankathanai, the sources added.
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Joint leadership for SLMC

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2000, 12:11 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has decided on two people to take over the leadership of the party, which fell vacant with the sudden demise of Mr.M.H.M.Ashraff, founder leader in a helicopter crash on Saturday. Deputy Leader Rauff Hakeem and Mrs Feriel Ashraff, widow of the late Mr.M.H.M.Ashraff will take over the joint leadership of the SLMC.
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Chavakachcheri battles rage

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2000, 09:51 GMT]
Fierce fighting has been continuing in the outskirts of Chavakachcheri where the Liberation Tigers have launched counter attacks on Sri Lanka Army troops who had advanced towards this key town in the Jaffna peninsula on Sunday, sources in Jaffna said.
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Conflicting claims over Chavakachcheri

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2000, 18:08 GMT]
Heavy fighting has been continuing between the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the Liberation Tigers in the Chavakachcheri sector in the Thenmaradchi Division from early hours Sunday said sources in Jaffna. The Sri Lankan Defence Ministry told reporters that government troops have captured the key town of Chavakachcheri in a military operation which commenced around 8 a.m. However, the Liberation Tigers said that government troops had entered the outskirts of the town and heavy fighting was raging.
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No compromise with LTTE promises PM

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2000, 18:06 GMT]
While addressing a People's Alliance (PA) election rally at Kurunagala, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake said that his government will not enter into any cease-fire agreement with the Liberation Tigers, despite the calls being made repeatedly by the United National Party (UNP) to establish cease-fire with the LTTE and to stop the war.
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SLMC meets to choose new leader

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2000, 17:56 GMT]
The high command of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) is meeting tonight in Colombo to elect a new leader to succeed late Mr.M.H.M.Ashraff who was killed a helicopter crash yesterday, party sources said.
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SLMC, Fowzie request crash probe

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2000, 13:42 GMT]
Minister of Transport and Highways Mr.A.H.M.Fowzie has requested the President to order an impartial inquiry into the crash of the Sri Lanka Air Force helicopter on Saturday in which his cabinet colleague was killed. Sri Lanka's Ports Minister and Sri LAnka Muslim Congress (SLMC) leader, Mr.M.H.M.Ashraff was killed in the crash at Aranayake in the Kegalle District.
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Fresh SLA offensive in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2000, 10:46 GMT]
Heavy fighting has erupted again in the northern Jaffna peninsula as government troops launched another offensive to regain control over territories it lost to the Liberation Tigers in the Thenmaradchi sector, in May this year.
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Senior Sri Lankan Minister killed in helicopter crash

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 September 2000, 07:12 GMT]
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader (SLMC) and Sri Lanka's Ports minister M.H.M.Ashraff and at least 10 others were killed in a helicopter crash at Aranayake in the Kegalle district, about 60 km. east of Colombo, Saturday morning, police said.
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Photographer of Tamil daily held

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2000, 13:41 GMT]
A photographer working for a Tamil daily in Colombo was arrested on suspicion by Police Friday near the scene of the suicide bomb attack near downtown Colombo. His colleagues in the paper, Thinakkural, said that the photographer, S. Ramdas, had gone to a photo shop near Deans Road at the time of the blast. He had run to the scene upon hearing the explosion and taken some photos of the carnage. They said he was arrested when he had to rush back to the shop to buy new film.
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Fifteen arrested at temple

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2000, 13:37 GMT]
Fifteen people who were working at an 'Amman' Temple at Naasivanthivu, 34 km. north of Batticaloa, were arrested by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers during a search operation Thursday evening said sources.
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Bomb goes off in Colombo

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2000, 04:29 GMT]
At least seven persons, including a Policeman were killed and 25 wounded in an explosion near downtown Colombo Friday morning around 10.05 a.m. The blast was on Deans Road in Maradane, Police sources in Colombo said.
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TELO, TULF vote against draconian law

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 September 2000, 16:51 GMT]
The emergency regulations promulgated by the Sri Lankan President were passed in Parliament Thursday by a majority of ninety six votes. The Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation, the Sri Lanka Progressive Front and the Tamil United Liberation Front together cast five votes against the emergency. Members of the pro-government armed Tamil group, the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) voted for the draconian regulations that enable the government to gag the media and give sweeping powers to the Sri Lankan security forces to arrest and detain and to bypass normal procedures in law relating to inquest and investigation into deaths in custody or caused by their actions.
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Parliament sessions after dissolution unprecedented

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 September 2000, 05:54 GMT]
Availing herself of a constitutional provision that no government has had recourse to in the past, the Sri Lankan President convened the Parliament Thursday to approve emergency regulations. Legal sources said the move is perplexing because the Sri Lankan constitution provides for emergency regulations declared by the President under the Public Security Ordinance to be in operation until ten days after the date on which the new Parliament shall meet and sit after the conclusion of the general elections.
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Bomber in PA for mess of pottage- mother

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 15:38 GMT]
The press conference of a controversial ex-bomber turned PA politician was disrupted Wednesday by his angry mother and sister who claimed that the former Marxist revolutionary had been bought over for a mess of pottage by the government. A press conference was convened this afternoon by Ajith Kumara, a leader of the Marxist revolutionary party, the Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), to explain his decision to campaign in support of the People's Alliance.
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"ICRC ship only humanitarian link to Jaffna"

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 13:42 GMT]
The only remaining humanitarian link between the war-torn Jaffna and the rest of Sri Lanka is the ferry service run by the International Committee of the Red Cross, transporting medical supplies to all state hospitals in the peninsula said Mr.Harasha Gunawardene, Information Officer of the ICRC at a press briefing Tuesday on board the new vessel "Jaya Gold" berthed in the Ports Authority jetty in Trincomalee harbour.
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ARTICLE 19 slams election violence

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 12:11 GMT]
ARTICLE 19, the anti-censorship pressure group Tuesday condemned the election-related violence in Sri Lanka and called on the government to lift expression restrictions. In a statement, ARTICLE 19 condemned "the escalating number of killings and physical attacks apparently connected to October's parliamentary elections and called upon the Sri Lankan government to widen the space for peaceful political debate."
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Four soldiers wounded in claymore blast

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 12:06 GMT]
Four soldiers were wounded an army bus in which they were travelling was hit by a claymore mine at Sunkaankerny, about 30 km. north of Batticaloa, around 1.15 p.m. Wednesday said security sources in the eastern town.
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Two youths killed in ambush

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 12:04 GMT]
Two youths were shot and killed by a Special Task Force ambush unit at Aariyampathi about 8 km. south of Batticaloa on the Kalmumai road around 10.45 p.m. Tuesday said sources.
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Shelling wounds civilians, damages homes

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2000, 07:37 GMT]
A soldier was killed and two were wounded Tuesday night around 11.15 p.m when the Liberation Tigers fired 60 mm mortars on the Kalkudah Sri Lanka army camp, about 34 kilometers north of Batticaloa. A military trained policeman on duty was also wounded. Four civilians were wounded and ten houses were damaged in the Kalkudah village when the SLA retaliated with small mortar fire.
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Six killed in Trinco attack - VoT

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 September 2000, 12:00 GMT]
Three soldiers and three military trained policemen were killed when the Liberation Tigers attacked a joint Police-army detachment in Morawewa north-west of Trincomalee on Sunday night, the Voice of Tigers (VoT) said in its morning broadcast Tuesday.
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ICRC transfers 16 bodies

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 12 September 2000, 11:58 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army handed over the bodies of 16 Tigers who were killed in the Colombuthurai-Ariyalai sector of the Jaffna town on 10 September to the International Committee of the Red Cross at Neervely Tuesday around 11.30 a.m. The body bags were transferred by the ICRC to the area held by the Liberation Tigers along a route agreed upon by both parties.
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Three SLA killed in Batticaloa attack

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 September 2000, 15:59 GMT]
Three Sri Lanka army soldiers were killed and one was wounded when the Liberation Tigers attacked a road clearing patrol near Vavunathivu, five kilometers northwest of Batticaloa town Monday morning around 7.20 a.m. The Tigers took away the body of one of the soldiers, sources said.
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Balasingham releases book on 1995 peace talks

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 September 2000, 05:09 GMT]
In a new book, The Politics of Duplicity, released last week, Anton Balasingham critically examines the ill-fated peace talks held between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in late 1994 and early 1995, according to a report in the Tamil Guardian newspaper.
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Parents, SLFP protest EPDP action

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 19:24 GMT]
The family of a Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) supporter, including women, were severely assaulted Sunday morning by cadres of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) in Sanguvely south in Jaffna while in Pt.Pedro about thirty persons, the parents and relatives of a student of Hartley College implicated by the pro-government armed group in a grenade attack, sat in protest in front of the EPDP office at Manthikai this morning sources said.
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Priest held over Nelliyadi shooting

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 19:19 GMT]
A Tamil temple priest was arrested by the Sri Lanka army in connection with an attack on three soldiers at Mooththa Vinayakar Koilady on the Jaffna-Pt.Pedro road near Nelliyadi Saturday morning. A soldier was killed and two were injured when an unidentified gunman shot them as he was stopped at the Mooththa Vinayakar Koilady road check point yesterday.
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Heavy casualties in Jaffna fighting

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 12:38 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army sources in Jaffna said 135 soldiers were wounded and at least 15 others were killed in the heavy fighting that erupted in the suburbs of Jaffna town Sunday morning.
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Claymore blast kills three

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 10:31 GMT]
Two Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers and a driver were killed when the three-wheeler in which they were traveling was hit by a claymore mine blast at Muttur, south of Trincomalee Sunday morning, security sources said.
Full story >>

SLA attempts another offensive in Jaffna suburb

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 08:10 GMT]
Heavy fighting erupted from this morning in the southeastern suburbs of Jaffna town when the SLA began another operation towards the positions of the Liberation Tigers in Colombuthurai amidst criticism that the massive offensive code named Rivi Kirana (Sun ray) launched Sunday 3 September to take this suburb had led to unjustifiable loss of manpower for the army and had failed to achieve any of its objectives. The Sri Lanka army's Chief of Defence Staff, General Rohan Daluwatte, has offered to resign over the Rivi Kirana fiasco.
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PA candidate shot dead

[TamilNet, Sunday, 10 September 2000, 05:59 GMT]
Mr.Cheliyan Perinpanayagam, a Peoples Alliance (PA) candidate contesting the Parliamentary elections in Batticaloa was shot dead by unidentified gunmen around 10.45 a.m. Sunday in Paandiruppu, 38 kilometers south of Batticaloa police sources in Kalmunai said. A local PA organiser who was with Mr.Perinpanayagam was also killed.
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Batticaloa massacre victims remembered

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 September 2000, 21:23 GMT]
A day of mourning was observed in three villages near Batticaloa town Saturday for the 184 people, including five infants and forty two children, who were gruesomely murdered in the Sri Lanka army camp here ten years ago on 9 September, 1990. A foundation stone was laid for a memorial and a meeting was held at the Sathurukkondaan Kannaki Amman temple in memory of the dead. Special offerings were made at the Tamil temples of the three villages and special services were held in the local churches.
Full story >>

EPDP threatens UNP candidates

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 September 2000, 21:17 GMT]
Two more candidates contesting Parliamentary elections in Jaffna withdrew from the race due to threats by the pro-government armed Tamil group, the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) opposition sources said. The two, Sabaratnam Jeyaratnam and Sithamparapillai Rasathurai, are candidates of the United National Party (UNP).
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President promises to consult Maha Sangha

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 September 2000, 21:10 GMT]
President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge has assured a group of Buddhist priests that in future she would consult the Maha Sangha before taking any decisions regarding important national problems.
Full story >>

News in Brief:

[TamilNet, Saturday, 09 September 2000, 20:48 GMT]
Two Sri Lanka Army (SLA) army soldiers are wounded in Nelliady, the estate workers to go on strike demanding pay increase and a tamil youth is wounded when Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) shoots at fishermen.
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Partial lifting of censorship said dubious

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 September 2000, 18:52 GMT]
The Sri Lankan Government said Friday that it has temporarily relaxed some of its draconian emergency regulations banning processions and meetings in view of the elections to Parliament next month. It claimed that the censorship was being lifted partially too, though the terms set by the government censor Mr. Ariya Rubasingha are nebulous, legal sources in Colombo said. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's Inspector General of Police (IGP) issued a directive today which appeared to be contrary to the government's decision to relax emergency regulations related to processions.
Full story >>

Policemen sell their camp defences

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 September 2000, 18:28 GMT]
Three military trained Policemen, including an officer, were arrested by the Mannar Police Friday for illegally selling concertina from the defences of their detachment. The Officer in Charge (OIC) of the Fifth Mile Post Police camp, 8 kilometers west of Mannar, had been compelling people in the area in need of building materials to buy concertina from him. The OIC had removed concertina from the fences and rolls forming the outer defences of his detachment and sold it to locals.
Full story >>

EPDP accused of intimidation

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 September 2000, 15:21 GMT]
The Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) has blamed the EPDP for threatening and intimidating its candidates contesting next election in the northern Jaffna District, scheduled for 10 October.
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EPDP cadres injured in grenade attack

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 September 2000, 09:41 GMT]
Two members of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) and two of its supporters were wounded when a grenade was lobbed at them by unidentified persons while they were pasting posters near the 1st mile post in Pt.Pedro in Jaffna last night around 7 p.m.
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Fisherfolk protest in front of SLA camp

[TamilNet, Friday, 08 September 2000, 08:30 GMT]
More than a thousand fishermen and their families sat in front of the Sri Lanka army camp in Manalkaadu on Jaffna's southeastern coast from 7 a.m. Friday morning to protest against the ban on fishing in Vadamaradchi east.
Full story >>

SLA humiliates civilians in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 September 2000, 15:37 GMT]
A man was forced to climb and sit atop a tree for more than an hour by a Sri Lanka army soldier in the heart of Batticaloa town today while four boys were forced by soldiers in another part of the town centre this noon to carry their bicycles on their shoulders. The man was allowed to climb down after the local MP intervened in the matter. The boys were humiliated because they had left their bicycles by the pavement when a military convoy was passing by, sources said.
Full story >>

Poovarasankulam FDL attacked

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 September 2000, 15:00 GMT]
A military trained policeman was killed and another seriously wounded when the Liberation Tigers attacked forward defence lines (FDL) in the Poovarasankulam sector in the Vavuniya district around 4.25 p.m. Thursday, security sources said.
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Jaffna secretariat strikes over assault

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 September 2000, 12:01 GMT]
Officials and employees attached to the Jaffna Secretariat (Kachcheri) went on strike from 9 to 10.30 Thursday morning protesting against an alleged assault on some of them by Sri Lanka Army soldiers, earlier Thursday.
Full story >>

Indian fishermen released

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2000, 14:59 GMT]
The High Court in Vavuniya Wednesday released four Indian fishermen who were arrested off the north-western coast 11 months ago and had been detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act at Mirihana Detention Centre.
Full story >>

Person on NUA list without consent

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2000, 13:35 GMT]
A former Secretary to the North East Provincial Ministry of Education, Cultural Affairs and Sports Mr.Sundaram Divakalala has informed the Commissioner of Elections that his name has been included in the National Unity Alliance list of candidates contesting the Jaffna district, without his consent.
Full story >>

Two GA's in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2000, 13:34 GMT]
Two Government Agents are now functioning in the Trincomalee district secretariat. One is Mr.N.P.K.Nelundeniya who assumed duties as the Government Agent of Trincomalee with effect last August 15. The other is Mr.S.D.Chandradasa who was the Government Agent in Trincomalee for over six years till last August 15.
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SLA hands over 36 bodies

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2000, 08:13 GMT]
(Correction) Sri Lanka Army handed over the bodies of 36 Liberation Tigers who were killed in the recent fighting in Jaffna, to the International Committee of the Red Cross. ICRC representatives received 36 body-bags at Neervey around 11 a.m. this morning said organisation's press officer Harasha Gunawardena.
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SLA weighs Colombuthurai losses

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 September 2000, 05:40 GMT]
"It cannot be denied that the loss of lives was greater than what was achieved" Jaffna Sri Lanka army spokesman Brigadier Sanath Karunaratna told the Jaffna daily Uthayan published Wednesday, referring to the heavy losses sustained by the SLA when it attempted to take a section of Colombuthurai, the southeastern coastal suburb of Jaffna town. "There is no point in capturing mere territory " the brigadier told the paper, adding that the Liberation Tigers are continuing to vehemently block the army from constructing new defence lines in Colombuthurai. The SLA's forward defences here were damaged and destroyed in a fierce counter attack by the Tigers on Monday.
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EPDP cheating people of Jaffna -Anandasangari

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 September 2000, 20:24 GMT]
"The EPDP was Premadasa's agent from 1989 to 1994. It has been operating as Chandrika's agent since 1995. Douglas Devananda, who did not have even half a cent in the past, is now getting seven million rupees a month from the government. The EPDP is cheating the people of Jaffna" said Mr. V. Anandasangari, senior vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) lashing out at the pro-Sri Lankan government armed Tamil group, the Eelam People's Democratic party, at a press conference in Jaffna town Tuesday morning.
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ICRC to transfer bodies

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 September 2000, 16:56 GMT]
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Tuesday that it has arranged the transfer of the bodies of the Liberation Tigers killed in the fighting with the Sri Lanka Army in Jaffna on Sunday and Monday. The transfer is expected to take place at Neervely, northeast of Jaffna town, around 9.30 a.m. Wednesday.
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Suspended jail term for editor

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 September 2000, 10:28 GMT]
Mr.Lasantha Wickrematunge, the editor of the Sunday Leader newspaper, was sentenced to two years simple imprisonment by the Colombo High Court in a criminal defamation case. The Colombo High Court Judge informed Mr. Wickrematunge that the jail sentence has been suspended for a period of five years.
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Hartal in Akkaraipattu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 September 2000, 10:25 GMT]
A hartal is being observed Tuesday in Akkaraipattu in the Ampara district to protest against the killing of two supporters of Mr.Segu Issadden, a former UNP Parliamentarian, at Varapaththansenai on Monday.
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29 groups to contest in Trinco

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 September 2000, 10:00 GMT]
The Assistant Commissioner of Elections Mr.Suntharam Arumainayagam Monday accepted nomination lists from seventeen political parties and six independent groups to contest the forthcoming general elections in the Trincomalee district.
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Costly SLA operation back to square one

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 September 2000, 20:18 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have repulsed a major offensive launched by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in the Jaffna peninsula killing at least 150 soldiers and injuring over one-thousand, said official LTTE sources in London.
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Jaffna fighting claims more

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 September 2000, 05:51 GMT]
The Sri Lanka army said today that 479 soldiers were wounded and 71 including 8 officers were killed in the fighting with the Liberation Tigers in Jaffna Sunday. Fierce fighting erupted when the SLA launched a massive operation into the eastern sector of the Jaffna town which is held by the Liberation Tigers in the early hours of the morning Sunday.
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Heavy casualties in Jaffna offensive

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 September 2000, 15:36 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers are resisting a major offensive launched by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) across five fronts, the LTTE said Sunday. Over 100 SLA troops have been killed and several hundred wounded, a statement from the organisation's London office said. The SLA is using intense artillery and multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRL) against LTTE held areas amid heavy fighting, the statement said, adding thousands of civilians have fled their homes.
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Jaffna artillery duels continue

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 September 2000, 07:32 GMT]
Hundreds of civilians fled their homes near Jaffna town fearing heavy barrages by the Sri Lanka army since Saturday night towards areas held by the Liberation Tigers. More than fifty soldiers were wounded in a limited operation conducted by the army in the eastern and northeastern sectors of the Jaffna town against the positions of the LTTE sources in the north said. The operation commenced last night.
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Confusion over Trincomalee Government Agent

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 September 2000, 05:03 GMT]
The Supreme Court on Friday directed that Mr.S.D Chandradasa be allowed to function as the Government Agent (GA) of Trincomalee district with immediate effect until a fundamental rights violation case filed by him is determined. This leaves the position of the current GA, Mr.Nelumdeniya, in confusion.
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UNP releases election manifesto

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 September 2000, 14:46 GMT]
The election manifesto released today by the United National Party (UNP) stated that the constitution would not be amended until a political solution to devolve powers agreeable to all political parties is reached. The clergy, civil organisations and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) would also be consulted for a broad consensus, the manifesto further said.
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Attanagala disabled get free land

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 September 2000, 14:44 GMT]
At the commencement of a function held at Temple trees for the disabled soldiers on Friday, President Chandrika Kumaratunge Bandaranaike distributed deeds of lands to disabled soldiers and families in the Attanagala area. Attanagala is the hometown of Bandaranaike family, about 33 km. northeast of capital Colombo.
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Nine parties contest in Trinco district

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 September 2000, 14:37 GMT]
Five political parties and an Independent Group today submitted their nomination papers to contest the Trincomalee electoral district during the forthcoming general elections.
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'Sihala Urumaya' contests in North

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 September 2000, 12:48 GMT]
A Sinhalese nationalist party, 'Sihala Urumaya' today submitted its nomination papers to contest the northern electoral districts of Jaffna and Vanni in the forthcoming general election.
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Sexual assault blamed on soldiers

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 September 2000, 17:05 GMT]
A teenage boy was admitted to Manthikai hospital, Point Pedro with bleeding from his genitals as a result of injuries sustained when he was molested by two persons whom the boy alleged were Sri Lanka Army soldiers from a camp in his village Kudaththanai, Jaffna.
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Artillery exchange in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 September 2000, 17:04 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army and the Liberation Tigers fought heavy artillery duels Friday in Meesalai sector of the Thenmaradchi Division in the Jaffna peninsula said sources. Meesalai is about 3 km. from Chavakachcheri on the Jaffna highway towards SLA-held Kodikamam. Chavakachcheri was captured by the Tigers in May this year.
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Fourteen SLAF killed in LTTE attack

[TamilNet, Friday, 01 September 2000, 05:54 GMT]
Fourteen Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) personnel were killed and eight were wounded when the tractor in which they were travelling was hit by a powerful claymore mine blast set off by the Liberation Tigers west of Vavuniya near the forward defence lines of the Sri Lanka army around 7.40 a.m Friday morning.
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