SLA, LTTE exchange rocket fire in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 24 September 2006, 13:47 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers and Liberation Tigers exchanged rocket fire in the eastern Batticaloa at 4:30 a.m. Sunday lasting twon hours, LTTE sources in Batticaloa said. Fighting broke out when Sri Lankan government troops attempted to move from Pulipainthakal Bridge in Kiran, through Tharavai Road, into areas held by the Liberation Tigers.
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TNA parliamentarian protests against human rights violations by SLA

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2006, 21:06 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian and the M P for Vavuniya, Sivanathan Kishore registered strong protest with the Vanni Military Commanding Officer Major. Gen. Edrisinge on Friday for not issuing ‘arrest receipts’ for persons arrested by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Vavuniya, said sources. He added in his protest that the SLA which conducted massive cordon and search operations in Vavuniya in the recent past, has failed to notify the relatives of the persons arrested by them during these search operations and condemned the practice of releasing abducted residents, blind folded on to the streets, as serious violations of human rights, added the sources.
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12 young men arrested in Jaffna, 3 reported "missing"

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 September 2006, 18:12 GMT]
Twelve young men were arrested when Sri Lanka Army soldiers cordoned off St.Patrics College and St. Charles Maha Vidyalam in Jaffna town in the early hours of Friday and thorughly searched civilians who were staying overnight in the schools for security reasons, according to complaints with Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission in Jaffna.
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Claymore explosion seriously injures two SLA troopers in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2006, 13:43 GMT]
Two Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers were seriously injured in a claymore mine attack by unidentified men on a SLA road patrol unit on Thursday morning in the Valigamam East region in the Jaffna peninsula.
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Clashes erupt at Nagarkovil, SLAF bombs Palai

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2006, 09:12 GMT]
Artillery attacks from Sri Lanka Army (SLA) positions towards Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Forward Defence Line in Vadamaradchi East intensified Thursday noon after exchange of mortar and gunfire in Nagarkovil. Earlier, around 10:0 a.m., Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Kfir bombers dropped at least 9 bombs in Pachchilaippalli village in Pallai in Thenmaradchi, destroying at least five civilian houses. Meanwhile, informed military circles in Colombo said some SLA coastal sentries near Nagarkovil camp were destroyed by the Sea Tigers in the fighting that ensued.
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SLA imposes conditions for resettling IDPs in Mannar

[TamilNet, Thursday, 21 September 2006, 06:03 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) has imposed restrictions for internally displaced families (IDP) to return to their homes located close to the Mannar public playground. SLA camp is located in the Mannar public playground. At a conference held in the Mannar district secretariat Wednesday with V.Visuvalingam, Government Agent in the chair, army officials present announced the conditions to be met by IDPs to return to their homes and to avoid any retaliation from the SLA in the event of attack on them, civil sources said.
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SLAF conducts air-raids over LTTE areas in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 19 September 2006, 16:27 GMT]
Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF) Kfir fighters flew air sorties over areas near residential homes in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlled territory in the Batticaloa district on Tuesday around 7 a.m, S. Seelalan, deputy head of the Batticaloa LTTE political wing said. Though two bombs were dropped simultaneously on Tharavi in Eerakulam region no one was hurt, Seelalan said.
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Four civilians shot dead in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2006, 23:26 GMT]
Unidentified armed men shot and killed four Tamil civilians on Sunday afternoon and Monday morning in separate incidents in Jaffna district. Victims of the three incidents have been identified. The deceased in the fourth incident is yet to be identified.
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Civilian killings soaring under Rajapakse - LTTE

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2006, 19:26 GMT]
Pointing out that the killings of Tamil civilians by Sri Lankan security forces and Army-backed paramilitary groups have shot up since President Mahinda Rajapakse assumed power last year, the Liberation Tigers said this week that in keeping with the agenda of Sinhala extremist forces, Rajapakse is determined to pursue the military option to the ethnic conflict. “All attempts by the LTTE to value, abide by and protect the CFA have been undermined by the military option pursued by the Rajapakse regime,” the LTTE said in a statement Monday.
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SLA, LTTE exchange rocket fire in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2006, 19:20 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army soldiers and Liberation Tigers exchanged rocket fire in the eastern Batticaloa in the early hours of Monday. Fighting broke out when Sri Lankan government troops attempted to move from ‘Karuthapaalam’ (Black Bridge) in Chenkalady, through Badulla road in to areas held by the Liberation Tigers, around 2:30 a.m., Monday.
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Uncertainty haunts Vaharai IDPs, two children die of diarrhea

[TamilNet, Monday, 18 September 2006, 15:54 GMT]
A one-year-old baby girl and a 7-year-old girl, both children of Internally Displaced families from Muthur East, have died of diarrhea at Vaharai hospital. A displaced medical doctor from Eachilampattu, M. Varathan, working at Vaharai hospital says the IDPs in Vaharai are facing health hazards. A displaced person, Thangarajah, says that the IDPs were however not prepared to return home, "at least until a situation that prevailed prior to April 25, is returned to our areas."


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SLN closes land route Jaffna islets

[TamilNet, Sunday, 17 September 2006, 12:27 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) closed the only land route to Jaffna islets through Allaipiddy from Sunday morning, civil society sources in Jaffna said. Civilians are stranded on either side of the closed road, and with the shortage of essential items prevailing in Jaffna district, islets' residents will suffer further deterioration of living conditions, civil society members said.
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SLA accused of stealing belongings of Thenmaradchy displaced

[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 September 2006, 17:14 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers in Thenmaradchy Forward Defense Line (FDL) areas have been accused of allegedly stealing millions of rupees worth of belongings left behind by the fleeing refugees from Thenmaradchy villages following clashes between the Government troops and the Liberation Tigers, civil society sources in Jaffna said. SLA troopers from Varani 52-4 Brigade Head Quarters located along Point Pedro- Kodikamam road have come under severe criticism from residents slowly returning back to their homes in villages surrounding the Varani camp for having ransacked their houses and stealing valuable property, residents said.
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Six civilians killed in 24-hours, fear grips Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 15 September 2006, 16:00 GMT]
"White van" squad allegedly operated by Sri Lanka Army, abducted a 19-year-old female, beat the victim to death and hung her Thursday night in Uduvil, Jaffna. The victim was the fiancee of a 23-year-old male who was abducted, shot into eyes and dumped in Innuvil Monday. Meanwhile, an eyewitness from the bar on Manipay Road in Jaffna, said Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were behind the killings at the bar where two youths from Punguduthivu were gunned down in execution style Thursday night. Another youth was killed in Anaikoddai, shot into his eyes. The other victims to die were a 28-year-old employee at a fuel station Thursday night in Kalviyankadu and a 25-year-old fisherman, Friday morning.
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SLA bars civilian travel through Uyilankulam checkpoint

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 September 2006, 16:08 GMT]
The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Thursday refused passage for stranded Tamil civilians in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Mannar territories and in areas controlled by the Sri Lanka government to cross over through Uyilankulam SLA check point, civil sources said.
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Youth shot by SLA, dies after swallowing cyanide

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 September 2006, 05:30 GMT]
Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldiers on a foot patrol shot a youth who allegedly attempted to run away having thrown a hand grenade on them in Vinayagapuram in the Valaichchenai Police area in Batticaloa district, around 1.30 p.m. Wednesday, Valaichchenai Police said.
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Rupavahini in ‘cultural censorship’ - FMM

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2006, 18:38 GMT]
A local media watchdog Wednesday slammed Sri Lanka’s government for abruptly ending a television series after altering the dialogue in the last episode that was broadcast. The Free Media Movement (FMM) said it “condemns this cultural censorship” and asked Sri Lanka Rupavahini Cooperation (SLRC) to resume broadcasting the ‘Sudu Kapuru Pethi’ programme, whose story line, written in 2003, is set in island’s ethnic conflict. According to a BBC Sinhala service report, the SLRC says the teledrama ‘disgraced’ the Sri Lankan security forces at a time of war.
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Vavuniya blast injures SLA soldier, claymore mines recovered

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2006, 16:26 GMT]
A Sri Lanka Army soldier was seriously injured when a water tanker was hit by a claymore mine blast at Rasenthirakulam in Vavuniya, Wednesday afternoon. The incident occured along Nellukulam - Cheddikulam Road, police said.
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Two women take cyanide in Jaffna, one dies

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 13 September 2006, 04:26 GMT]
Two women took cyanide capsules when a group of soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) on routine patrol during curfew hours in Vakaravaththai-Avarankal area in Valikamam East in Jaffna district had attempted to search them on Monday midnight. One woman died instantaneously and the other was admitted to Jaffna Teaching Hospital in a critical condition, Police informed Mallakam District Judge quoting SLA report.
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SLA fills fishing jetties with stones in Vadamaradchi

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 September 2006, 23:15 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army Saturday begun forcing fishermen along Vadamaradchi North to fill the mooring points and jetties with stones. "The mooring points, the only means of sea access for the fishermen who have struggled for years for their livelihoods are now being closed, shutting down all hopes of the fishermen in Vadamaradchi North," fishermen's Co-op Society sources said.
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