3 Tamil civilians arrested in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 August 2008, 16:35 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and the police launched an intensive checking operation Thursday from 8:00 a.m until 1:00 p.m in several places in Batticaloa including Batticaloa Kalladi, Naavatkudaa and Batticaloa town. Three persons were taken into custody in this checking.
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Abducted Batticaloa Tamil girl escapes in Colombo

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 August 2008, 10:00 GMT]
A nineteen-year-old Tamil girl who was abducted by an unidentified armed group on Tuesday evening in Batticaloa town escaped at Cinnamons Garden in Colombo Wednesday evening while being taken in a bus along with some abducted girls from the east, sources in Colombo said. The girl was taken into custody by police in Wellawatte when she was going to her relative's house in Wellawatte afer escaping from the abductors, according to police sources in Colombo.
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Sri Lanka parliament extends Emergency

[TamilNet, Thursday, 07 August 2008, 05:41 GMT]
The State of Emergency imposed in Sri Lanka on 12th August 2005 was extended by another month Wednesday by Sri Lanka's parliament by a majority of seventy two votes. Eighty four parliamentarians voted in support of the extension, and twelve voted against, parliamentary sources said.
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Sinhalese woman detained under PTA, in Colombo

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 August 2008, 11:37 GMT]
Sri Lanka Defense Ministry has served a detention order with effect from Tuesday till August 14 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) on a Sinhalese woman, Kamali Krishanthi Perera, of Pamankade in Colombo, for allegedly providing accommodation to a suspected suicide bomber of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Colombo, media sources said.
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23 Sri Lankan soldiers killed in Claymore ambush in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 August 2008, 10:29 GMT]
23 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were killed and four wounded in a Claymore ambush at Periyavaddavaan in Tharavai (Thoppikkal) area in Batticaloa district Tuesday evening around 6:30, well informed sources in Batticaloa told TamilNet. Wounded soldiers were admitted to Welikande hospital. This is the first major ambush on SLA since the Sri Lankan forces occupied the Thoppikkal region an year ago.
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2 civilians killed in SLA shelling in Vadmaraadchi East

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 August 2008, 08:00 GMT]
A 45-year-old father of three and a 30-year-old father of one were killed Wednesday morning when Sri Lanka Army (SLA) fired artillery shells targeted civilian settlements, fishing huts and the stretch along the coast in Vettilaikkea'ni in Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) controlled Vadamaraadchi East of Jaffna district. One civilian was wounded in the shelling and rushed to hospital, according to initial reports from Vadamaraadchi East.
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Tamil youth reported missing in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 August 2008, 11:41 GMT]
A 17-year-old Tamil youth who had left home Saturday is reported missing, according to complaints lodged by his mother Pathma Balasuntharam to Batticaloa police, International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and Human Rights Commission (HRC) in Batticaloa.
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Tamil undergrad arrested in Kandy

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 August 2008, 07:35 GMT]
Kandy police arrested Sunday a Tamil undergraduate from Trincomalee studying in the Arts Faculty of Peredeniya University, sources in Kandy said.
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Tigers seize weapons, recover 2 SLA dead bodies in Ve'l'laangku'lam

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 August 2008, 06:49 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) have recovered two dead bodies of Sri Lanka Army soldiers, including one of of an 18-year-old soldier, following intense fighting on Sunday in Ve'l'laangku'lam and seized a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) Launcher, a T-56 assault rifle, ammunitions and accessories. The SLA has suffered heavy losses in three clashes at Ve'l'laangku'lam. Meanwhile, a heavy fighting was continuing at Paalamoaaddai front in Vavuniyaa, where at least 10 SLA soldiers were killed Monday, according to LTTE officials in Vanni.
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Tamil abductee recovered dead in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 August 2008, 06:04 GMT]
Unidentified armed men arriving in a three-wheeler 27 July night had abducted a Tamil man from his home and his corpse with gunshot injuries was found in Veappangku’lam in Vavuniyaa, Monday morning, sources in Vavuniyaa said.
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Upcountry Tamil youth arrested in Kadugannawa

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 August 2008, 11:21 GMT]
A Tamil youth from upcountry was taken into custody by Kadugannawa Police when he was traveling in a passenger train from Colombo to Badulla Saturday night. When the train stopped at Kadugannawa railway station all passengers in the train were subjected to severe search and intensive interrogation, sources in Kadugannawa said.
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61 Tamils arrested in Negombo

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 August 2008, 11:15 GMT]
Sixty-one Tamil civilians taken into custody with several others in cordon and search operations conducted by the police and the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) from Saturday late evening till Sunday early morning in several parts of Negombo town are being detained in Negombo police station. The rest were released after preliminary inquiry.
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6 Tamils arrested in Vavuniyaa

[TamilNet, Monday, 04 August 2008, 10:37 GMT]
Six Tamil civilians including a woman were arrested in a cordon and search operation conducted by the Vavuniyaa Police and Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Chettikulam and Mudaliyaarkulam villages in Vavuniyaa on Monday from early morning until 10:00 a.m., sources said.
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Land dispute leads to arson in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 August 2008, 11:40 GMT]
Unidentified persons set fire Saturday around 9:30 p.m to more than fifteen temporary huts built by Muslims in Meeraavoadai in Koa’ra’laippattu Divisional Secretariat area in Batticaloa district, sources in Batticaloa said. Sri Lanka Army (SLA) and police had intervened earlier Friday in a confrontation between Tamils and Muslims related to ownership of lands in Meeraavoadai and dispersed the two parties, the sources added.
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Portending danger for potable water in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 August 2008, 09:50 GMT]
The news of re-opening the cement factory at Kaangkeasanthu'rai (KKS) in the Jaffna Peninsula has been received with serious concern by academics and environmentalists from Jaffna. According to them, the factory, when it was functioning earlier, was a health hazard to the densely populated surroundings. It affected horticulture as crops were covered by cement dust. Above all, exploitative quarrying of limestone has already portended the possibility of seawater coming inside and polluting the entire groundwater table of the peninsula.
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SLA blocks resettlement in Valikaamam HSZ

[TamilNet, Sunday, 03 August 2008, 01:45 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Jaffna has refused to allow resettlement in areas inside the High Security Zone (HSZ), but has given permission to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to settle in the no-man's area adjoining the Front Defence Line (FDL) area in Valikaamam north, sources in Jaffna said.
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ACHR: Sri Lanka, worst Human Rights violator among SAARC countries

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 August 2008, 12:40 GMT]
Asian Center for Human Rights (ACHR), a New Delhi-based human rights watchdog, in a rights report covering the South Asian Association for Regional Cooporation (SAARC), released Friday, said "Sri Lanka ranks South Asia’s No.1 human rights violator," adding, "Sri Lanka’s human rights indicators must be considered within a context of very high levels of impunity which tend to suggest a worsening over the human rights picture over the long term."
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STF intensifies cordon, search operations in Kalmunai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 August 2008, 12:20 GMT]
Special Task Force (STF) commandos and police are jointly engaged in cordon and search operations from last week in Kalmunai police division in Ampaa’rai district, subjecting the residents to increased restrictions, sources in Kalmunai said.
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Tamil Nadu opinion poll calls for independent Eezham

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 August 2008, 07:18 GMT]
A majority of voters decided that an independent Thamizh Eezham is the solution to the Sri Lankan crisis and solicited support to the Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE) in a significant opinion poll conducted by Ananda Vikatan, a popular weekly of Tamil Nadu state in India. The outcome of the poll and its appearance in an influential media, foretell shifting paradigms in Tamil Nadu scenario, according to observers.
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30 SLA killed, offensive thwarted, Tigers locate SLA dead bodies

[TamilNet, Saturday, 02 August 2008, 01:59 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam officials in Vanni told TamilNet that their defensive formations at Mallaavi thwarted Friday a three-pronged Sri Lanka Army (SLA) offensive, which was launched from Vavunikku'lam and Paalaiyadi targeting Mallaavi. At least 30 SLA soldiers were killed and more than 60 troopers sustained injuries in an intense fighting, according to the Tigers. 3 dead bodies of SLA soldiers were also recovered by the Tigers. An SLA vehicle, one AK-LMG with rounds, one RPG launcher with shells, a mortar, eleven T-56 assault rifles were seized by the Tigers.
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