Vavuniya North DS wounded, driver killed in Claymore attack

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 June 2006, 12:34 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit exploded a Claymore mine seriously wounding the driver of the vehicle in which Vavuniya North Divisional Secretary was riding in the LTTE controlled Mathiyamadu village. The driver, N. Balasingam, seriously wounded in the attack and rushed to Vavuniya hospital, succumbed to his wounds while being transferred to Anuradhapura hospital, medical sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE political official sniped and killed in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 June 2006, 10:10 GMT]
A Sri Lanka Army sniper shot and killed Batticaloa Kudumbimalai Political Coordinator Ramanitharan in Murakkoddanchenai Saturday morning around 9:45 a.m., LTTE's Batticaloa District Political Head Daya Mohan said. The incident took place at Thihiliveddai, a hamlet across the lagoon from Santhiveli, about 24 kilometers north of Batticaloa.
Full story >>

40,000 child prostitutes in Sri Lanka, says Child Rights Group

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 June 2006, 04:14 GMT]
Sri Lanka has nearly 40,000 child prostitutes and more than 100,000 children working as domestic aides, the National Child Protection Agency (NCPA) in Colombo said quoting statistics revealed by UNICEF and ILO, Colombo daily "Daily Mirror" reported in its Monday edition. The International Labor Organization (ILO) marked 12 June as "World Day Against Child Labor" to focus world attention on the urgent need to eradicate child labor.
Full story >>

LTTE delegation arrives in Switzerland

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 June 2006, 02:47 GMT]
More than two hundred Swiss Tamils carrying Tamileelam National flag and flags of their adopted country Switzerland, welcomed the Liberation Tigers delegation at the Zurich Airport at 7:45 p.m. Sunday, Tamil sources in Swiss capital said. The LTTE delegation completed discussions with the Norwegian facilitators and with the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) Friday and met with the LTTE's Constitutional Affairs Committee Saturday. The non-cabinet level Sri Lanka delegation left Oslo mid-day Thursday after refusing to meet with a similar level group from the LTTE delegation.
Full story >>

Swiss youths celebrate Students Uprising Day

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 June 2006, 18:47 GMT]
Swiss Tamil young adults and high schoolers celebrated Tamil Students Uprising day Saturday in Bern, Switzerland, commemorating the 32nd anniversary of Jaffna Student leader P.Sivakumaran who died on 5 June 1974. Sivakumaran was the first one in the history of Tamil struggle to take cyanide when Sri Lanka Police surrounded his hideout in Urumpirai.
Full story >>

LTTE's Constitutional Affairs Committee meets in Oslo

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 June 2006, 15:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) delegation led by its Political Head, S.P. Thamilchelvan met in Oslo with legal experts from the Tamil diaspora, Saturday, Tamil sources from Oslo said. The discussions focussed on the status quo between the Sri Lankan and the LTTE forces, including the territorial sea rights, and formulated recommendations to the LTTE leadership on the future course of action on these matters. Head of Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) during Friday's meeting had confirmed SLMM's position on sea-activities that officials of the SLMM will not travel on board the Sri Lankan vessels until the sea dispute is resolved between the parties.


Full story >>

LTTE, SLMM discuss Trincomalee ground situation

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 June 2006, 12:09 GMT]
Members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Trincomalee district Sunday morning met with the political leadership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and discussed the ground situation in the district. The discussion was held at the LTTE district secretariat located in Sampoor in Muttur east, LTTE sources said.
Full story >>

Two civilians killed in DPU Claymore attack

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 June 2006, 05:39 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit (DPU) soldiers exploded a Claymore mine and killed two civilians, who were riding in a motorbike, inside LTTE controlled territory, at Palaipani in Vavuniya west around 10:00 a.m. Sunday, sources in Vavuniya said.
Full story >>

Elilan complains to SLMM of SLA terror campaign in Muttur

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 June 2006, 10:49 GMT]
Mr.S.Elilan, Trincomalee district political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Saturday lodged a complaint with the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in the east port town that the Sri Lanka Army and its paramilitary groups are engaged in terrorising and preventing Tamil people from travelling to and from Trincomalee and Muttur by land and sea route.
Full story >>

LTTE Commander killed in Claymore attack

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 June 2006, 10:10 GMT]
Lieutenant Colonel Mahenthi, an LTTE Commander in the Mannar district, was killed along with three LTTE cadres in a Claymore attack carried out by the Sri Lanka Army soldiers on Vellankulam - Thunukkai Road on Saturday morning, LTTE officials in Killinochchi said. A civilian farmer, seriously wounded in a Claymore attack Saturday morning around 6 a.m., succumbed to his wounds at Killinochchi hospital. Two employees of the World Bank-funded North East Irrigated Agriculture Project (NEIAP) were wounded in a separate attack in Nedunkerni. Claymore attacks by the Sri Lankan Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP), known as the Deep Penetration Unit (DPU), have escalated in LTTE-controlled Vanni.
Full story >>

LTTE issues Communiqué in Oslo

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 June 2006, 15:24 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam issued a Communiqué on Friday after concluding meetings begun two days ago with Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) and the Norwegian facilitators in Oslo.
Full story >>

Sri Lanka's quick exit from Norway, a political blunder- Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 June 2006, 15:07 GMT]
Sri Lanka delegation left Thorbjørnrud Hotel in Jevnaker, Oslo, mid day Thursday, boycotting talks scheduled to continue until Friday, after being present at the talks venue for only half a day. "Sri Lanka displaying crass exhibitionism, has abandoned all norms of diplomatic protocol by disrespecting the efforts of Norwegian facilitators by making a quick exit from Norway. It is a major political blunder," said S.P.Thamilchelvan speaking to reporters at 4:00 p.m. Friday, sources from Norway said.
Full story >>

India expresses deep concern over the failure of Oslo meeting

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 June 2006, 13:36 GMT]
The Government of India, in a press release issued from the High Commission in Sri Lanka, said it was deeply concerned over the failure of the proposed meeting between the Government of Sri Lanka and representatives of the LTTE, aimed at strengthening the role of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission and ensuring the security of its members.
Full story >>

Construction worker's body with assault injuries found in Polikandy

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 June 2006, 09:52 GMT]
The body of Rasiah Muraleeswaran, 42, of Meesalai East, a mason employed in the FORUT housing scheme for the tsunami affected at Nilavan Settlement Scheme in Polikandy in Vadamaradchy north was found at the building site Friday morning with severe assault injuries, sources in Polikandy said. Injuries indicated he was bludgeoned to death, said sources. Nilavan settlement, where the body was found, is located within the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) High Security Zone (HSZ), and is guarded 24 hours by SLA troopers.


Full story >>

Undue emphasis on direct talks sidelined key issues - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 23:46 GMT]
Preoccupied with bringing Sri Lankan government and the LTTE delegations to face-face talks, Norwegian facilitators had placed less emphasis on engaging with key issues at stake, and more on convincing the two sides to sit opposite to each other, the head of the LTTE’s Political Wing, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, told reporters Thursday evening.
Full story >>

Norway writes to Rajapakse, Pirapaharan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 19:49 GMT]
Expressing concern over the grave situation in Sri Lanka, the Royal Norwegian Government said in a statement, Thursday, that it has taken "the unprecedented step of requesting both parties, through letters to President Mahinda Rajapakse and the LTTE leader Mr Vellupilai Prabhakaran, to provide responses in writing to five critical questions". "The responses by the parties to these questions will determine which steps will next have to be taken by the Royal Norwegian Government and the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, in close partnership with other actors in the international community," the statement further said.
Full story >>

Dispute over delegation makeup derails LTTE, GoSL meeting

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 18:22 GMT]
Head of the LTTE’s Political Wing, Mr. S. P. Thamilchelvan, met top Norwegian officials and the head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) for over an hour Thursday evening. Mr. Thamilchelvan told TamilNet that the LTTE had come to Oslo to discuss the future of the SLMM with Norway. However, although Head of the LTTE’s Peace Secretariat, S. Puleedevan, was prepared to meet his counterpart, Palitha Kohona, heading the Sri Lankan delegation, but as Colombo continued to insist senior members of the LTTE be included in LTTE delegation, the LTTE-GoSL meeting did not take place, Thamilchelvan said.
Full story >>

LTTE in discussions with Norway on SLMM - Thamilchelvan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 12:58 GMT]
The LTTE delegation in Oslo is involved in discussions with the Norwegian facilitators on key issues, including the role of international truce monitors, the head of the LTTE's Political Wing, S. P. Thamilchelvan said Thursday. Responding to media reports that the LTTE was refusing to sit with the Sri Lankan government (GoSL) delegation, Mr. Thamilchelvan said "discussions on the monitors at this crucial juncture would be productive and progressive when the [LTTE and government] delegations raise the issues separately with the Norwegian facilitators, giving room for them to devise approaches to resolve these issues."
Full story >>

21 Tamil youths arrested in Eravur, Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 10:55 GMT]
Twenty-one Tamil youths from Kaluvanachikudy and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled territory in Batticaloa were arrested in a roundup search conducted by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the police in the Eravur public market and its surroundings Thursday morning from 8.00 a.m till 10.30 a.m, said Eravur police.


Full story >>

Two workers killed in SLA deep penetration attack

[TamilNet, Thursday, 08 June 2006, 09:32 GMT]
A trainee caretaker and a Sinhalese driver of a water supply contractor, Thummara Enterprises, were killed in a Claymore attack carried out by the Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit attack in LTTE controlled Mannar district Thursday at 12:50 p.m., Tamileelam Police officials said.
Full story >>