Category: Politics
India ready to help evacuation of Sri Lankan Tamil civillians
NEW DELHI, February 18, 2009 (AFP) – India said Wednesday it was ready to help evacuate tens of thousands of Tamil civilians caught in the crossfire between Sri Lankan troops and Tiger rebels in the northeast of the island.Indian troops, sent in by ex-Congress premier Rajiv Gandhi to enforce a peace deal on the island, […]
‘s war zone: running the gauntlet
TRINCOMALEE, February 18, 2009 (AFP) – Shopkeeper Subramaniam Sudaharan says he is lucky to be alive after his two teenage sons were shot dead as the family fled Sri Lanka’s increasingly brutal war zone.What was left of the devastated family — he, his wife and a younger boy — were among 440 war-wounded evacuated from […]
Sri Lanka rejects truce call as fighting escalates
February 18, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government on Wednesday rejected fresh calls for a truce with Tamil Tigers as troops took another village from rebel control and concern mounted for civilians trapped in the war zone. Defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said the government was firmly committed to wiping out “terrorism” and described the demand […]
Sri Lanka Tigers sign up child soldiers: UNICEF
February 17, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s cornered Tamil Tiger rebels have intensified conscription of child soldiers, some as young as 14, the United Nations agency for children said Tuesday.The Tigers have recruited more than 6,000 child soldiers since 2002, he added. UNICEF said in a statement that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) […]
Sri Lanka mulls sea rescue of civilians in war zone
February 17, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka is considering a sea evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians trapped inside its war zone, officials said on Tuesday as a government ally said there was a spike in non-combatant deaths.Some 80,000 civilians remain inside the northern Wanni region, where government troops have cornered the Tigers into […]
British-Sri Lankan charged with with arson
LONDON, February 16, 2009 (AFP) – British police have charged a man with arson and affray after he reportedly tried to set himself on fire outside Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Downing Street offices, they said Sunday. Sivsubarmazam Loges-Waran, 41, of Gloucestershire in western England, is due in court on Monday “charged with arson with intent […]
Red Cross evacuates 400 from Sri Lanka war zone
February 16, 2009 (AFP) – The Red Cross evacuated Monday a ferry load of 400 civilians wounded in fighting between the Sri Lankan army and Tamil Tiger rebels. The injured and their accompanying relatives were shipped out of the conflict zone in the northeast of the island and taken for “further medical treatment,” International Committee […]
Tigers killing civilians fleeing Sri Lanka war zone: UN
February 16, 2009 (AFP) – Tamil Tiger guerrillas have prevented tens of thousands of civilians from leaving Sri Lanka’s war zone and those trying to escape have been “shot and sometimes killed,” the United Nations said Monday. Tens of thousands of civilians in the rebel-held area were experiencing serious shortages of food, medicine, and clean […]
Sri Lanka ruling party wins landslide local vote: results
February 15, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s ruling party headed for a landslide victory in local elections seen as a referendum on the government’s military campaign against Tamil rebels, official results showed Sunday. President Mahinda Rajapakse’s Freedom Alliance won 36 seats out of 58 in the Central Provincial council. The alliance also had collected nearly […]
Sri Lanka braces for bloodier Tiger battles
February 15, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s government hoped Tamil Tiger rebels could be defeated in days, but both sides are now warning bloodier battles may lie ahead — and civilians are likely to pay a heavy price. Security forces have cornered the retreating Tigers in the north of the island after over three bloody […]
Sri Lanka Tiger chief still on island: report
February 15, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s elusive rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is still on the island and has been preparing his Tamil Tiger fighters to launch last-ditch counter attacks, a news report said Sunday.Prabhakaran, 54, and his eldest son Charles Anthony have blended in with about 100,000 civilians trapped in the conflict zone, the […]
Sri Lanka Tigers attack bus carrying war refugees: military
February 14, 2009 (AFP) – Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels lobbed a grenade and opened fire at a bus transporting civilians out of Sri Lanka’s war zone on Saturday, killing one woman and wounding 13, the defence ministry said.Sri Lanka has resisted calls for a “no-fire period,” amid claims from relief agencies that a “humanitarian catastrophe” […]