10 wounded in grenade explosion in Colombo

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 September 2008, 16:47 GMT]
Two underworld gangs allegedly clashed with each other using hand grenades along Gas Workers Street in Colombo Monday around 9:30 p.m., media sources in Colombo said. Two of the victims sustained critical injuries.
Full story >>

Youth shot dead in Uyilangku’lam, Mannaar

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 September 2008, 16:03 GMT]
Unidentified armed men shot and killed a 19-year-old youth Monday in Uyilangku’lam in Mannaar district, media reports quoted police spokesman Ranjit Gunasekara in Colombo. The victim is claimed to be a resident of Uyilangku’lam.
Full story >>

Uprooted families in Jaffna, still waiting action plan for resettlement

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 September 2008, 08:19 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) officials who met the committee appointed by the Colombo Supreme Court to explore the possibility of resettling uprooted people from the High Security Zone (HSZ) of the SLA, told the committee on Friday that more than 600 families, outside the HSZ and the adjoining no-man zone, have been resettled, including the data as part of the uprooted families within the HSZ. 19,000 families have been uprooted from their houses within the HSZ in Jaffna. Only 24 houses have been cleared for resettlement within the 600 meter no-go zone, the SLA has informed the committee.
Full story >>

35 Tamil youths arrested in Trincomalee following LTTE air strike

[TamilNet, Sunday, 07 September 2008, 10:52 GMT]
About 35 Tamil youths have been arrested in several suburbs in Trincomalee district since the air strike carried out by the Liberation Tigers of Thamil Eelam (LTTE) on the naval headquarters located in Trincomalee city, according to complaints received by the regional office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL), sources in Colombo said.
Full story >>

Police, homeguards detain 9 Tamils in Colombo

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 September 2008, 11:34 GMT]
Nine Tamil civilians, including two women, were taken into custody Friday morning in a cordon and search operation conducted in Wellawatte area in Colombo district. The operation commenced Thursday evening and concluded Friday morning, sources said.
Full story >>

'It is now the Tamil diaspora'

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 September 2008, 07:02 GMT]
A conference on Sri Lankan diaspora that took place last week in Kuala Lumpur provided an opportunity to understand the broad perspectives of the Eezham Tamil diaspora, its universal aims and development agenda on one hand and to witness the subtle efforts by certain elements to nullify its identity and hijack its noble agenda to the diplomatic benefit of the Sri Lankan state on the other hand, according to a Malaysian Tamil scholar.
Full story >>

Casualty toll: 85 SLA killed in Vannearikku'lam

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2008, 17:14 GMT]
85 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed in Vannearikku'lam and 280 wounded in the fighting on Monday and Tuesday, according to informed sources close to the hierarchy of the Sri Lankan military. Meanwhile, Jayaratna florist, one of the leading florists in Colombo, took in charge 56 remains of SLA soldiers on Wednesday, before the 29 dead bodies handed over by the Tigers had reached Colombo. The high toll was not anticipated by the top brass of the SLA, which deployed elite Special Forces (SF) with high-powered rockets and explosives during the offensive push at Vannearikku'lam on Monday.
Full story >>

Tissainayagam, PTA, and Humanitarian Crisis in Vanni

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2008, 11:45 GMT]
The action taken by the Sri Lankan Government to indict Tissainayagam, for stating the truth and exercising the right of fair comment he enjoys as a journalist, make it impossible for any dissent from the governments point of view to be published by the press in Sri Lanka. Tissainayagam is the first journalist to be caught up under the Draconian twins, the Prevention of Terrorism Act No:48 of 1979 (PTA) as amended, and the Emergency Regulations (EMR).
Full story >>

Buddhist monk desecrates Hindu temple in Colombo

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 September 2008, 05:53 GMT]
Colombo Additional Magistrate Ajith Anawaratne Wednesday ordered to remand the Chief Incumbent of Grandpass de Mel Watte Buddhagaya Viharaya, Sri Sapugasyaye Dhammanada Thero and three of his associates for destroying the adjoining Sri Muththumariamman Hindu temple in the early hours on Wednesday.
Full story >>

Police arrest six SLA deserters in Ambalangoda

[TamilNet, Thursday, 04 September 2008, 11:09 GMT]
Six deserters from the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) were taken into custody in a cordon and search operation conducted by the police in Ambalangoda, a town in the southern province Tuesday night, sources said. The arrested were remanded on the orders of Ambalangoda Magistrate Wednesday, according to legal sources.
Full story >>

SLA sends deserters to jail after military court hearing

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 03 September 2008, 03:15 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) officials after a hearing in a military tribunal sent a group of 106 deserters to Welikada prison on Monday, and another group of 199 deserters on Tuesday, military sources said in Colombo.
Full story >>

1200 Tamils languishing under custody in Western Province - SL Minister

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 September 2008, 14:35 GMT]
Upcountry Peoples Front (UPF) parliamentarian and a deputy minister in Mahinda Rajapaksa's government, P. Rathakrishnan, has compiled a report with details of around 1,200 Tamil youths of both sexes, languishing in the detention centres and prisons in South after being arrested in Colombo and its suburbs recently. Mr. Rathakrishnan has told media that he would demand the advisory committee of the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry to expedite the inquiries against the detainees and the police to ensure that innocent Tamil civilians are not harmed when enforcing 'law and order.'
Full story >>

TID arrests Upcountry Tamil youth after police training

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2008, 15:52 GMT]
An upcountry Tamil youth was arrested by a team of the Colombo Prevention of Terrorism Unit on August 26 after one month training in the Kalutara Police Training School.
Full story >>

Tamil civilian released after 14 months' detention

[TamilNet, Monday, 01 September 2008, 15:40 GMT]
Jaffna born Tharmalingam Pushparajah, a resident of Negombo in the western province for several years was released by the Colombo Magistrate Court Friday after 14 months' detention in Welikada prison under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) without any evidence to implicate him with any 'terrorist activity', legal sources in Colombo said.
Full story >>

Rajapaksa's residence under tight security

[TamilNet, Sunday, 31 August 2008, 18:01 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government has issued a gazette notification banning the movement of trucks, trailer lorries, parades, demonstrations, rallies, gatherings (political or otherwise) and motorcades within the high security zone in and around Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's residence "Temple Trees" in Colombo with immediate effect, officials in Colombo said. The lighting of firecrackers or fireworks for any reason within the HSZ is also totally prohibited.
Full story >>

30 Tamils interrogated over Colombo bomb blast

[TamilNet, Sunday, 31 August 2008, 15:59 GMT]
About 30 Tamil civilians were taken in for questioning by the Sri Lankan police following the bomb blast in Pettah, Colombo, Saturday afternoon. Around 45 civilians were injured in the blast.
Full story >>

NGO vehicle narrowly escapes DPU Claymore attack in Vanni

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2008, 18:53 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Deep Penetration Unit soldiers triggered a Claymore mine Friday evening around 7:00 p.m. on a convoy of FORUT, a Norwegian NGO, at Kanakaraayanku'lam, a few minutes after the convoy has passed the entry point to Vanni, Tamileelam Police officials told TamilNet Saturday. Tamileelam police officials charged that the SLA has stepped up Claymore attacks on civilian vehicles in Vanni in a bid to terrorise the people of Vanni. The NGOs and the UN agencies have become under pressure from the Sri Lankan government, which is pressurising a move to force people to vacate LTTE administered areas.
Full story >>

Jaffna youth reported missing in Dehiwala

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2008, 14:46 GMT]
Thirty year old Naranarayasinghan Loganthan, a native of Punaalai in Jaffna district and resident of Dehiwala in Colombo district was reported missing since July 17, according to a belated complaint lodged with the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) and Civil Monitoring Committee by his sister Vijeyaluxmy on Thursday, sources said.
Full story >>

10 SLA deserters escape from custody

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2008, 09:18 GMT]
Ten deserted soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) escaped from the Pelawatte SLA camp in Akuragoda, located near Colombo, on Friday while being detained for further inquiry. The deserters were arrested by the military police of the SLA and handed over to the police for follow up action, sources in Colombo said. They were later arrested by the Sri Lankan military police.
Full story >>

Bomb explodes in Colombo, 45 wounded

[TamilNet, Saturday, 30 August 2008, 07:01 GMT]
At least 45 persons were wounded when a bomb exploded in Colombo around 12:15 p.m. Saturday. The blast has taken place in the pavement of Olcott Mawatte in Pettah, Police said. Medical sources said some of the wounded were in critical condition.
Full story >>