Details of mine safe areas in Jaffna released

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 February 2008, 00:17 GMT]
The coordinating office for the removal of land mines in Jaffna peninsula, situated in Jaffna secretariat, in a communiqué issued Saturday, said mine clearing activities in areas permitted by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) is nearing completion and released details concerning the areas cleared of land mines.
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3 SLA killed in Vavuniyaa FDL - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 23 February 2008, 12:54 GMT]
A 3-member-team of a patrol unit of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in no-go zone between the Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) and the SLA at Naavatku'lam in Vavuniyaa were killed in an attack carried out by the Tigers Saturday around 10:15 a.m. The SLA is yet to recover the dead bodies of their soldiers lying near their Forward Defence Line, the Tigers said.
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8 civilians killed in SLAF bombardment in Poonakari, children among victims

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 February 2008, 05:37 GMT]
Eight civilians including a 6-month-old infant, a 4-year-old boy, their mother, a 8-year-old girl and an English teacher were killed, 14 including four children and another teacher were wounded in a Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) aerial bombardment of a civilian settlement at Kiraagnchi in the Poonakari division of Ki'linochchi district Friday at 8:10 a.m. Three houses were fully destroyed and many houses have sustained damage in the indiscriminate aerial bombardment in which more than 20 bombs were dropped by four bombers. Meanwhile, Sri Lankan ministry of defence in Colombo claimed that the SLAF had attacked "an inland sea tiger base" at Kiraagnchi.
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NE Bishops scheduled to meet UN special envoy

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 February 2008, 00:33 GMT]
A delegation of bishops from Northeast are scheduled to meet Angela Kane, UN Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs who arrived in Colombo Wednesday morning for a week-long fact finding mission in the island, sources close to the Bishops said.
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Kosovo’s victory has lessons for other liberation struggles - paper

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 February 2008, 16:16 GMT]
Describing Kosovo’s declaration of independence on Sunday and the ensuing international recognition as “a powerful shot in the arm to peoples resisting and seeking independence from tyrannical regimes,” the Tamil Guardian newspaper this said that “whilst every situation and every circumstance is unique, there are important lessons from the Kosovan march to independence for liberation struggles everywhere. The paper pointed out that just a few years ago, the idea of Kosovan independence had been dismissed by the international community and the Kosovan Liberation Army had been condemned as terrorists by the United States and other countries.
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STF arrests Tamil police constable, brother-in-law

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 February 2008, 12:17 GMT]
In a joint search operation conducted by Special Task Force (STF) commandos and police Thursday in the Mochchimunai village within Kaththaankudy police division, a police constable and his brother-in-law were arrested, Kaththaankudi police said.
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Dry fish Trader shot dead in Negombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 February 2008, 03:39 GMT]
Unidentified men operating in a white van shot and killed a dry fish trader Tuesday night 10:00p.m. in Negombo, Negombo police said.
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3 SLA soldiers gunned down in Buttala

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 February 2008, 12:23 GMT]
A group of attackers opened fire on a Sri Lanka Army vehicle on Buttala - Kathirkaamam (Kataragama) Road Wednesday around 11:00 a.m., killing three SLA troopers on the spot, Police said. Meanwhile, Brigadier Sudantha Ranasinghe, Hambantota SLA Commander, has been removed from his post with immediate effect. Col. Devendra Perera is appointed in place of Brigadier Sudantha Ranasinghe
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India's Peace and War

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 20 February 2008, 01:24 GMT]
The now defunct Ceasefire Agreement in Sri Lanka was mooted and shadow-managed by the BJP government, according to Indian journalist, M.R. Narayan Swamy. Wickramasinghe and Pirapaharan were aware of this top secret mission of India, supervised by Vajpayee's Advisor Brajesh Mishra, but not J.N. Dixit who succeeded him with the change of government in May 2004. Dixit had to learn it from Wickramasinghe. The CFA signed in February 2002 was unilaterally withdrawn by the Sri Lanka government in January 2008. Swamy's revealing and the chronology of events implicate the Congress establishment and the ego war of the Chanakyas (Machiavellis) of New Delhi in belligerency returning to Sri Lanka.
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Expression of support to LTTE not an offence: Karunanidhi

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 February 2008, 16:55 GMT]
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Monday reiterated that mere expression of support to the LTTE was not an offence as per an observation of the Indian Supreme Court. He admonished Opposition leader Jayalalithaa for misleading the people on this issue.
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SLA hands over 7 dead bodies to Mannaar hospital

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 February 2008, 11:18 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army on Monday handed over seven dead bodies, of four females and 3 males, to Mannaar hospital through the Police. The killed were LTTE cadres in the heavy fighting that ensued in Mannaar on three fronts on Monday, according to the SLA. Four of the dead bodies were to be transported to LTTE controlled area by the ICRC via Oamanthai in Vavuniyaa, sources in Mannaar said. Both the LTTE and the SLA have claimed to have inflicted heavy casualties to the other side as clashes intensified on Monday.
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SLA blocked in three fronts in Mannaar - LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 February 2008, 17:47 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam on Monday confronted Sri Lanka Army on three fronts in Maanaar from 4:00 a.m. Heavy fighting lasted till 7:30 p.m. when SLA movement was successfully blocked by the Tigers at Paalaikkuzhi, Kaddukkarai and Ka'rukkaayk-ku'lam according to LTTE's Operations Command in Mannaar. The SLA has suffered heavy casualties, the Tigers said. Atleast 10 SLA soldiers were killed by Tiger snipers. Sri Lanka Air Force Kfir fighter jets and MI-24 gunships were also engaged, providing support fire to the SLA forces. Meanwhile, sources in Mannaar city said tension prevailed in Tha'l'laadi as LTTE fired artillery shells fell inside the military garrison.
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SLAF jets bomb LTTE territory in Poonakari

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 February 2008, 17:17 GMT]
Two Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) fighter jets dropped more than three bombs Monday around 2:30 p.m on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) territory in Poonakari (Pooneryn) in Jaffna after flying low over Jaffna peninsula prior to the air strike, sources in Jaffna said.
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Colombo TV news editor fears for his life

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 February 2008, 15:11 GMT]
International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), a media rights watchdog, in a press release issued Monday, condemned "all attempts to intimidate, harm and harass journalists," including a news editor at Sirasa, the Sinhala language channel of MTV-MBC network, "and any acts by public officials or members of the public to undermine the safety and security of journalists and media personnel who dare to report the country’s inconvenient truths." Kedelpitiya, editor at Sirasa, complained of stalkers, and threats, following his work on the Action TV news program, which recently aired several reports on corruption allegedly involving powerful figures.
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Sri Lanka rejects Kosovo independence

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 February 2008, 18:22 GMT]
While the United States and a number of European Union countries are expected to recognize Kosovo on Monday, Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry, reasoning that declaration of Independence can set "an unmanageable precedent in the conduct of international relations," said that Sri Lanka does not endorse the secession of Kosovo from Republic of Serbia. Questions raised by the birth of a new state towards demand for self-determination by similarly affected Tamils in Sri Lanka, may explain Sri Lanka's discomfiture towards Kosovo's independence, more than the outwardly expressed "concern" for the threat to international peace and security, political observers in Colombo said.
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LTTE attacks SLA FDL in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 February 2008, 14:13 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) Sunday attacked a Sri Lanka Army Forward Defence post at Naavatku'lam in Vavuniyaa district, killing a SLA soldier and wounding two. The SLA soldiers withdrew from the checkpost following the LTTE attack that lasted for 30 minutes from 11:10 a.m., according to LTTE Operations Command in Vavuniyaa. Meanwhile, shelling duel continued in Paalamoaddai throughout the night till Sunday 10:00 a.m.
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SLA push fails in Paalaikkuzhi, SLAF bombs Madu area- LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2008, 22:05 GMT]
Attempts by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers to push forward in Paalaikkuzhi, Mannaar Saturday morning 7:00 a.m. was foiled according to Mannaar Operations Command of the Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE).
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7 SLA killed, 14 injured in Paalamoaddai, Vavuniyaa - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2008, 20:09 GMT]
Seven Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed and fourteen were injured when SLA, supported by artillery fire and using heavy weapons tried to advance towards Liberation Tigers Forward Defence Lines (FDLs) in Paalamoaddai at noon around 12:45 p.m. Saturday, LTTE command in Vavuniyaa said.
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4 SLA killed, 9 injured in Pa'ndivirichchaan - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2008, 19:54 GMT]
During an attempt at 10:00 a.m. and a subsequent attempt at 3:20 p.m Saturday by Sri Lanka Army (SLA) to advance towards Liberation Tigers Forward Defence Lines (FDLs), the LTTE fighters beat back the advance killing four SLA troopers and injuring nine, LTTE military command in Mannaar said.
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Justification for Tamil statehood compelling under international law- Fein

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2008, 15:10 GMT]
Accusing a Sri Lanka website of "surrender[ing] the honorable role of scrutinizing and criticizing [Sri Lanka] government to become an obsequious courtier daily genuflecting to the GOSL and the Tamil quislings Karuna and Pillaiyan group," Bruce Fein, an attorney based in Washington D.C, in responding to questions posed by the website, challenged the site to publish a list of Americans killed or threatened by the LTTE, saying "[O]ne statutory requirement is proof that an organization threatens Americans or impairs the national security of the United States."
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