News In Brief

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 08 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
A Tiger attack in Jaffna forced the Sri Lankan army to use artillery and the a Muslim leader calls for unity between the Tamils and Muslims against Sinhala chauvinism.
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News In Brief

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tiger units in Jaffna have stepped up their attacks whilst in the east, another Sri Lankan detachment was overrun last night.
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Heavy fighting continues in Vanni

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Heavy fighting continued today at Kanakarayan Kulam and on the Mankulam Ottisuddan road as the Liberation Tigers stepped up attacks on columns of Sri Lankan army's Div.53.
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Sri Lankan depots overrun on Sunday

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The LTTE confirmed today that they had overrun the newly established depots supplying the Sri Lankan army's 53rd division in the Vanni on Sunday night and captured a huge quantity of arms and ammunition.
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Tigers overran STF camp at Arantalawa

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers overran the Special Task Force camp at Arantalawa in the early hours of the morning today.
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JVP seeks Tamil support

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The General Secretary of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna told the Sinhala press today that his 'party' was going to hold propaganda meetings in the main towns of the northeast to muster Tamil support for the group's campaign against the devolution package proposed by the PA regime. The JVP is a militant left wing Sinhala revolutionary group that led two bloody insurrections to capture state power.
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Tigers rout Sri Lankan advance

[TamilNet, Monday, 06 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Heavy fighting between troops of the Liberation Tigers and the Sri Lankan army which erupted southwest of Mullaithivu at Manavaalan Patta Murippu yesterday (Sunday Oct.5) continues. Although the intensity of the fighting has come down today, the army is expecting a major counter attack by the Liberation Tigers on its hastily organized defenses at Manvaalan Patta Murippu on the Mankulam - Ottisuddan road.
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News In Brief

[TamilNet, Sunday, 05 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
A PLOTE militant suspected of several murders is organising a satyagraha campaign to aid his election campaign and the LTTE have destroyed two SLA trucks at Omanthai.
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News In Brief

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
An MSF delegation visits a hospital in trouble. The Sri Lankan government continues to avoid negotiations with the LTTE and a Muslim delegation returning to Jaffna gets a pleasant surprise.
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TULF woos UNP over package

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The TULF met with Sri Lanka's United National Party today to discuss the PA government's devolution package. The TULF delegation went to the meeting with the intention of persuading the UNP leadership, ultimately to agree to the main critical portion of the PA's proposals.
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SLFP organiser in Jaffna shot dead

[TamilNet, Saturday, 04 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The SLFP organiser for the Jaffna district, Mr. S.T Tharmalingam was shot dead at his home in Columbuthurai, a suburb of Jaffna town, last night at 8.45 p.m. Sources in Jaffna said that Mr. Tharmalingam was found dead after he was summoned from his house by some unidentified persons.
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Wounded soldiers condemn Sri Lanka's war

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Speaking at a public meeting held in the Ampara town hall recently, Commander H.K Dayaratne, president of the association representing the permanently wounded soldiers of the Sri Lankan army, condemned Sinhala politicians for opportunistically seeking political advantage by carrying on with the war in the Tamil homelands.
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News In Brief

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The Sri Lankan military is restricting the amount of food allowed into the islands off the Jaffna peninsula. In Trincomalee district, the LTTE has released 12 detainees and the Sri Lankan navy has arrested 98 Tamil fishermen - for fishing.
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Former Jaffna GA granted bail

[TamilNet, Friday, 03 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
Legal sources in Colombo said yesterday that Mr. Chellaiah Pathmanathan, the former Government Agent (GA) for Jaffna had been granted bail by the Sri Lankan government's attorney general. Following a bail application by Mr. Pathmanathan's lawyer, the Colombo Fort magistrate directed that he be produced in court today.
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Tigers repulse SLA assault

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 01 October 1997, 23:59 GMT]
In heavy fighting on Tuesday, Tamil Tiger forces drove back a renewed Sri Lankan army assault in the Puliyankulam area. SLA units which had bypassed Puliyankulam were advancing on Kanakarayankulam when LTTE forces counter-attacked, inflicting heavy casualties and capturing a large quantity of weaponry.
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Sri Lanka plans referendum to split the east

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 September 1997, 12:01 GMT]
The Sri Lankan government's cabinet held a very crucial meeting yesterday (29 September) to map out a strategy for conducting a referendum in the island's eastern province. The proposed exercise came under fire from community leaders in the east who heard about the cabinet's discussions on the matter.


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Heavy going for SLA armour

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 30 September 1997, 12:00 GMT]
With the monsoon underway, heavy rain is affecting the fighting in the Vanni region. The rain is turning the terrain around Puliyankulam into a sea of mud, which is posing new difficulties for the hard pressed Sri Lankan forces there. The conditions are also said to be affecting the Tigers.
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Tamils suffer discrimination: Canadian court

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 September 1997, 12:03 GMT]
Whilst ruling on the case of Mr. Suresh Manickavasagam, the presiding Judge said that in his opinion the Tamil people suffered from discrimination. The Judge did not rule on the LTTE itself, saying he was not in a position to pass judgment on the conflict in Sri Lanka. During the case, the Judge had been presented with evidence of gross human rights violations by successive Sri Lankan governments against the Tamil people.
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Sri Lanka stretches the truth on Canadian ruling

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 September 1997, 12:01 GMT]
When a Canadian judge upheld a security certificate issued against Mr. Suresh Manickavasagam by the Canadian Immigration department on the basis that he was a member of the LTTE, the Sri Lankan government claimed that the Canadian court has said that the LTTE was a 'terrorist' organization. However, the judge had made it clear that he was not passing judgement on that issue, but was merely saying that the Immigration department had 'reasonable grounds' to believe that Suresh was inadmissible into Canada.
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Canadian Tamils protest outside Parliament

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 September 1997, 12:02 GMT]
Over 850 Canadian Tamils staged a symbolic fast in Ottawa on Friday, protesting against the planned deportation of Tamil community activist Mr. Manickavasagam Suresh. The demonstrators stood outside the Canadian Parliament, holding placards denouncing the planned deportation. The protest was organized by the Federation of Associations of Canadian Tamils (FACT).
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