Water war

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 16:33 GMT]
"Defensive attacks" launched by Liberation Tigers four days ago with the surprise artillery attacks on Trincomalee naval base, and the sweeping attacks on Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camps and positions in Muthur and southern sector of Trincomalee, were interpreted as the Tiger response to the three-month-long humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Muthur East, where 30 000 civilians were forced to live as Internally Displaced People (IDPs). Supply of drinking water, one of the most basic needs, emerged as a critical issue as wells dried in the hottest spell as August approached, says Trincomalee Parliamentarian K. Thurairatnasingham.
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Sri Lankan bombers, artillery target road infrastructure

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 13:47 GMT]
Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bombers and Sri Lanka Army (SLA) artillery attacks Saturday have destroyed the road network of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Muthur east and Eachchilampathu division and the ferry over Verugal Aru, according to sources in LTTE controlled Sampur. The bridge over Ilankaithurai Muhathuwaram was damaged.
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"Expel Norway from Sri Lanka" – JVP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 11:30 GMT]
Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the extreme Sinhala nationalist ally of Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse, has resumed their demand that the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) must expel Norway from Sri Lanka. Speaking at a Media Conference Thursday, August 3, 2006 convened by the Patriotic National Movement (PNM) held at the Colombo Sri Lanka Assembly College, Sri Lankan parliamentarian and JVP Propaganda Secretary, Wimal Weerawansa called on Norway’s International Development Minister Eric Solheim to withdraw the statement he made last Wednesday. Sri Lanka being a sovereign nation, Solheim has no authority to give orders to GOSL claimed Wimal Weerawansa.
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Paramilitaries set fire to Tamil paper newsstand in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 11:27 GMT]
A paper distributor's shop located in the High Security Zone (HSZ) in Batticaloa town was completely burnt early morning Saturday, sources from Batticaloa said. Muruges and Son Stores which is on the Batticaloa Central Road was 75 meters from the Special Task Force (STF) troopers camp next to the Batticaloa Clock Tower. Batticaloa residents allege the shop was burnt by paramilitaries working in collaboration with the SLA. Paramilitary cadres have warned paper distributors to cancel two mainstream papers, Sudar Oli and Thinakkural, published in Colombo in Batticaloa Sri Lanka Army controlled areas. Meanwhile, Batticaloa Police said they suspected electric short caused the fire.
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"Objective accomplished, forces returned to CFA positions" - LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 11:04 GMT]
The militay spokesman of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Irasaiah Ilanthiayan, told TamilNet that the LTTE troops, by midnight Friday, returned to their original positions as per February 22, 2002 Ceasefire Agreement. 32 LTTE fighters, including a Lieutinent Colonel and another senior cadre of the Tigers were killed in the operation that excerted a military pressure to Colombo's military offensive to resolve a civilian dispute, Mr. Ilanthirayan said. Two SLN Dvora Fast Attack Crafts (FACs) were destroyed and sunk, 3 boats were damaged. Mortars, Light Machine Guns and ammunitions were seized.
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SLA shoots dead 5 intruders near Muhamalai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 10:47 GMT]
Five men who attempted to infiltrate from LTTE controlled area into Jaffna district through the Forward Defense Lines (FDLs) near Muhamalai have been shot dead by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA), Kodikamam Police said.
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Fighting ceases in Muthur, ICRC resumes food supply

[TamilNet, Saturday, 05 August 2006, 08:02 GMT]
Fighting ceased between the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Trincomalee and humanitarian agencies resumed food supplies to 18 000 Muslim and Sinhala refugees staying in 5 different schools in Kantalai and 15 000 Tamil refugees staying in Kiliveddy. Initial reports from Muttur said the LTTE fighters returned to their positions Friday. No official comments were available from the LTTE or Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) regarding the military situation. Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Head Major General Ulf Henricsson was on his way to Muthur and Norwegian Special Envoy Jon-Hanssen Bauer was en route to Kilinochchi via Jaffna.
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SLA sergeant injured in Vavunativu

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 18:43 GMT]
M.Jayantha, 35 years, a Sri Lankan Army (SLA) Sergeant on guard duty at the Vavunativu SLA Camp was injured in an attack on the camp by LTTE cadres at the LTTE Forward Defense Lines (FDL) around 7:00 a.m. Friday, Batticaloa Police said. The injured trooper was admitted to the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital for treatment.
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Handover of SLA bodies delayed

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 13:22 GMT]
Due to the urgent need of the administrative section of the Liberation Tigers in attending to the developing humanitarian crisis to provide safe passage to more than 10,000 residents of Muttur to safer areas, the transfer of more than 40 bodies of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers has been delayed, local LTTE officials in Sampur said.


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Shelling, troop movement in Batticaloa, 3 killed

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 11:32 GMT]
As fighting rages in Trincomalee district, to the south, Sri Lanka Army troops Friday attacked Liberation Tigers’ positions in northern part of Batticaloa district. Following five hours of intense shelling, that killed 3 members of a family, SLA troops and paramilitaries advanced towards LTTE positions in Panichchankerni before being beaten back. Meanwhile, a significant number of Sri Lanka Army troops in Batticaloa town have been withdrawn for deployment in Trincomalee and their duties were being assigned to the troops from the elite Special Task Force (STF). All leave has been cancelled for police forces.
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Sinhala villagers block ICRC food convoy to Muttur

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 11:09 GMT]
A food convoy led by the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) Friday morning from Trincomalee town to Muttur to supply food materials to civilians displaced due to the fighting between SLA and LTTE was stopped at Kantalai by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) on Friday afternoon around 1 p.m. The SLA refused permission for the convoy to proceed along Kantalai-Allai road to Muttur citing security reasons, ICRC sources in Colombo said.
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Arrangements underway for civilian movement from Muttur - LTTE

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 04:52 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Friday morning said their cadres were making arrangements to safely transport all civilians out of the Muttur town to remote locations as Sri Lanka Army shells continued to hit civilian refuges in the town. The LTTE has urged the ICRC and other humanitarian agencies to enable humanitarian assistance to the displaced people.
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SLMC accuses SL Army of shelling Muttur civilians

[TamilNet, Friday, 04 August 2006, 00:33 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s largest Muslim party Thursday accused Sri Lankan security forces of shelling Muslim civilians in embattled Muttur town, killing dozens of people and wounding scores more. As Sri Lanka’s military blamed the Tamil Tigers, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) leader, Rauf Hakeem told AFP: “the people were killed in attacks carried out by the security forces.”
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Electricity, telephone service to Muttur cut off

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 17:44 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government has cut off the supply of electricity to Muttur town and other villages in the Muttur division from Tuesday since the fighting broke out between the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). From Thursday noon telephone service to Muttur town has also been cut off, Muttur civilians arrived in Trincomalee Thursday evening with injured civilians said. Telephone communications were severed after the artillery attack on Muttur Arabic College and Thoppur Al-Noor Mahavidiyalayam where twenty two Muslim civilians who sought refuge were killed, and sixty nine injured, sources there said.
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LTTE to hand over bodies of 40 SLA troopers

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 14:03 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers were making arrangements to hand over bodies of forty Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troopers killed in Muttur fight, LTTE's military spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan said. The LTTE would be handing over the bodies through the ICRC. "Twelve Tiger fighters have been killed during the last 48 hours fighting in Muttur area thwarting the Lankan navy and army attempts to land their troops," he said.
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SLA artillery fire kills further 12 Muslim civilians in school refuge

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 13:20 GMT]
Twelve Muslim villagers in Al Nuriah Muslim school in Thoppur were killed Thursday evening when Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired artillery shells hit the school, civilian sources in Thoppur said. At least five persons were wounded. Meanwhile, Police sources in Trincomalee said the policemen entrapped in Muttur town were evacuated to Trincomalee. One policeman was killed and fourteen policemen were wounded, according to initial reports.
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Tigers discuss humanitarian measures in Muttur

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 11:32 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Trincomalee District Political Head S. Elilan and the LTTE's Liason officer for UN and NGO affairs, were engaged in discussions related to the urgent humanitarian measures necessary to address the needs of the civilian population that has taken refuge in Mosques and Churches in large numbers in Muttur area that has largely come under the control of the LTTE, according to the Tiger Military Spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan. Mr. Ilanthirayan said the SL forces attempt to land in Muttur jetty was thwarted and forty SLA troopers were killed Thursday.
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SLA artillery fire kills 10 Muslim civilians, 40 wounded

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 07:41 GMT]
At least ten Muslim civilians who sought refuge in Arabic College in Muttur town were killed when an SLA fired artillery shell hit the college Thursday around noon. About nine thousand Muslim civilians, men, women and children have sought refuge in the Arabic College and mosques in Muttur town since the fighting between SLA and LTTE broke out in Muttur Tuesday night, civil sources said. Heavy fighting is continuing between SLA and LTTE in the jetty area.
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Kfir bombers observed over Vanni

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 06:52 GMT]
Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) bomber Kfir jets were observed over Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled Vanni territory Thursday around 1:00 p.m.
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Fierce fighting continues third day in Muttur

[TamilNet, Thursday, 03 August 2006, 06:14 GMT]
Fierce fighting erupted between the Sri Lanka Army and LTTE fighters in Muttur town Thursday early morning following the deployment of hundreds of SLA troops from Trincomalee town. These troops were brought to Muttur by a landing craft of the Sri Lanka Navy Thursday early morning with air cover amid heavy artillery and mortar fire towards the LTTE territory in Muttur East, civil sources in Muttur said. Fierce fighting began after government troops landed at the Muttur jetty when large number of LTTE fighters in the Muttur started attacking the government troops with artillery and mortar preventing them from entering the town, the sources added.
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