Araiyampathy mourns native son Lt. Col. Neelan

[TamilNet, Thursday, 15 April 2004, 04:17 GMT]
The body of the deputy head of intelligence of the Liberation Tigers for the Batticaloa district, Lt. Col. Neelan, who was killed by the fleeing renegade Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan (‘Karuna’), was brought to his home village, Araiyampathy, Wednesday, and kept at the Ramakrishna Mission school hall where the public paid its respects in large numbers, sources said.
Full story >>

All TNA parliamentarians to visit Kilinochchi Friday

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 April 2004, 15:01 GMT]
All the twenty-two Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians are expected to meet the political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Mr.S.P.Thamilchelvan, Friday in Kilinochchi, sources in the Vanni said Wednesday.
Full story >>

Karuna's associate returns to LTTE

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 April 2004, 14:51 GMT]
Mr.Visu (Sinnathamby Gopalan), who was appointed as the political head of the Karuna group in Batticaloa and Amparai districts by the renegade commander Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan when he broke away from the Liberation Tigers, rejoined the LTTE Wednesday afternoon in Batticaloa town, sources said.
Full story >>

LTTE mourns cadres killed by fleeing renegade

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 April 2004, 13:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam Wednesday officially announced that their deputy head of the Batticaloa intelligence unit, Lt.Colonel Neelan (Sinnathamby), was shot dead by the "traitorous" Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan alias Karuna on April 12 before he fled his jungle hideouts in the Batticaloa district, sources said.


Full story >>

Four Karuna group cadres further remanded

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 14 April 2004, 13:23 GMT]
The Batticalo Magistrate, Mr. H.H.M. Ajmeer, on Wednesday ordered further remand until April 27 to the four cadres of the renegade Karuna group who were arrested by Sri Lanka police on March 31 with weapons on the Kalmunai-Batticaloa road, sources in Batticaloa said.
Full story >>

Kausalyan explains retrieval with minimal bloodshed

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 April 2004, 16:36 GMT]
The political head of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for the Batticaloa-Amparai region, Mr. Kausalyan, speaking to press persons in Vakarai Tuesday, said that the retrieval of the region from the renegade Karuna group was made according to the plans of the LTTE leader, Mr. V. Pirapaharan, and executed with care and humanitarian concern by commanders led by the Special Commander for the region, Mr. T. Ramesh.


Full story >>

Batticaloa residents express happiness over end of tensions

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 April 2004, 15:58 GMT]
The residents of the Batticaloa-Amparai district have expressed happiness over the end of the tensions caused by the renegade Karuna group in the region. The people are celebrating the Tamil New Year with relief, sources in Batticaloa said.
Full story >>

LTTE hands over 269 cadres to their parents in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 April 2004, 14:53 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said Tuesday that it has handed over 269 of its cadres, including 168 who are less than eighteen years old, to their parents when they rejoined the LTTE following the LTTE's recovery of the Batticaloa-Amparai areas from the breakaway faction led by Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan (Karuna), Vanni sources said.
Full story >>

‘No trace of ‘Karuna’ in Batticaloa’s interior’ – LTTE commanders

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 April 2004, 14:23 GMT]
Special Forces commanders of the Liberation Tigers in Batticaloa told TamilNet Tuesday that all the LTTE military camps in the district’s interior have been completely checked and cleared. “We have recovered the Batticaloa-Amparai district armoury fully, except for a heavy mortar and some rifles. The ammunition stores are intact”, one of them said. He said that they found several vehicles set on fire in ‘Meenaham’, the LTTE’s largest military base in the east.
Full story >>

Kathiraveli battle dead named

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 April 2004, 10:23 GMT]
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam yesterday named its three fighters who were killed in the 9th April Kathiravelli battle against cadres loyal to Renegade LTTE commander ‘Karuna,' Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan, Jaffna daily Uthayan reported.
Full story >>

Renegade LTTE Commander flees jungle base

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 April 2004, 10:42 GMT]
Renegade LTTE commander ‘Karuna,' Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan, has fled his jungle base north west of Batticaloa accompanied by a small number of his closest supporters and bodyguards, Sivagnanam Karikalan, a senior leader of the Liberation Tigers from the east, who is currently visiting Switzerland, told TamilNet. According to unconfirmed reports, Mr. Muraleetharan has sought refuge in a Sri Lankan military camp in the adjacent district of Polonnaruwa. Military sources in Colombo declined to confirm the reports.
Full story >>

LTTE forces move into Batticaloa's hinterland

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 April 2004, 06:37 GMT]
Liberation Tigers moved into the entire areas south west of Batticaloa town Monday. Several military units of the LTTE, which moved from different directions, took control of Kokkadichcholai around Monday noon. Karuna Group's propaganda organ, Tamil Alai office and the Press were taken over by members of the LTTE's political division who also moved into the area. Meanwhile hundreds of male and female cadres from Renegade LTTE Commander Karuna's main base, Meenakam, began arriving in their villages from Monday morning.
Full story >>

LTTE recovers arms, cadres from Karuna group

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 April 2004, 14:31 GMT]
In commando style attacks on the Karuna group in Vakarai, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have recovered large quantities of arms and a large number of cadres, the ThamilAlai.com website (a shadow edition from the East of the Karuna group's TamilAlai) said.
Full story >>

LTTE forces move into Amparai, Batticaloa south

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 April 2004, 04:44 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers took control of the areas held by the Karuna Group in the Amparai District on Saturday night. Troops led by the LTTE's Amparai district military commander, 'Janarthan', moved into the main base areas in Kanjikudichcha Aaru region, about 96 kilometres south of Batticaloa, from Saturday evening, sources said. Meanwhile, advance commando teams of the LTTE moved into the southwestern sector of the Batticaloa district and began consolidating strategic positions there since Saturday morning.
Full story >>

TRO, Red Cross care for displaced in East

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 18:00 GMT]
About two hundred families, who fled to Muttur to escape from the fighting between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and cadres loyal to renegade commander Karuna in Verugal and Kathiraveli villages, are given shelter and food in schools in Eachilampathu division in the Muttur south held by the LTTE, sources said.


Full story >>

Operation to expel Karuna from Tamil homeland begun- LTTE

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 16:46 GMT]
The political section of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in a press release said that the LTTE has started co-ordinated operations to expel renegade LTTE commander ‘Karuna,' Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan, from the Tamil Homeland, Daya Master, media coordinator for LTTE, said from Vanni.
Full story >>

LTTE forces move into Vakarai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 16:22 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers took control of Vakarai, the main village south of the Verugal River, Saturday afternoon. There was no resistance from the Karuna Group when troops of the LTTE’s Jeyanthan Brigade entered the village, 62 kilometres north of Batticaloa, sources in the area said. LTTE infantry units are consolidating positions in Vakarai and its southern environs close to the Panichchankerni Causeway.


Full story >>

LTTE’s ‘Jeyanthan Brigade’ units lead Vakarai offensive

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 19:46 GMT]
Special units of the Jeyanthan Brigade, the most feared infantry formation of the Liberation Tigers, led the multi pronged offensive towards Vakarai Friday, according to LTTE sources in the east. Two counter attacks on the forward defence localities which the Tigers have consolidated at Kandalady, 64 kilometres north of Batticaloa, led by ‘Jim Kelly Thaaththa’ and ‘Robert’, deputies of renegade LTTE commander ‘Karuna’ (Mr. Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan), were beaten back Friday evening, according to the sources.
Full story >>

Civilians flee fighting in Vakarai

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 17:05 GMT]
A large number of civilians are fleeing their homes as a result of the fighting between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the renegade Karuna group in Vakarai, sources said.
Full story >>

TNA nominates two national list MPs

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 April 2004, 16:38 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance Thursday nominated Mr.Jospeh Pararajasingham of Batticaloa and Mr.M.K.Eelaventhan of Jaffna for the posts of two national list parliamentarians through the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK), political sources said.
Full story >>