LTTE extends ceasefire till April 24

By Nirupama Subramanian

COLOMBO, MARCH 22. The LTTE announced today that it would extend its unilateral ceasefire by one more month till April 24, but threatened to terminate the truce if the Sri Lankan government continued with military offensives. With this, the ceasefire will enter its fourth month. Initially, the LTTE declared a ceasefire last Christmas eve, and has extended it three times so far on a monthly basis.

Unlike on the earlier extensions, this time the LTTE made no appeal to the international community to ``persuade'' Sri Lanka to reciprocate the truce. Instead, it made a bitter reference to the ``foreign policy determinations'' of powerful nations that had ``criminalised'' the LTTE and ``encouraged'' the hardline ``militaristic approach'' of the Sri Lankan Government towards the ethnic conflict.

The LTTE statement announcing the extension said it had been ``rigidly'' observing the truce for the last three months, ``in spite of provocative military operations'' by the security forces and ``derogatory and dismissive remarks'' by the Government.

The LTTE said it had registered its ``strongest protest'' to the President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga, through the Norwegian special envoy, Mr. Erik Solheim, over the aerial bombardment of ``Tamil civilian areas''.

``In this context we wish to warn the Sri Lankan Government that we reserve the right to terminate our self- imposed truce if it refuses to de-escalate the war and continue with its armed offensive operations including air strikes,'' the LTTE said.

So far, LTTE statements have been issued by its London offices, but reflecting one of the immediate consequences of the British ban on the group, today's press release did not bear its U.K. address. Instead, the statement was marked ``International Secretariat, Vanni, Tamil Eelam''. Vanni is mainland northern Sri Lanka, which is under LTTE control.

As in the two earlier extensions, this time too, the LTTE said its decision was ``to provide further time and space for the Norwegian facilitatory efforts to bring the parties in conflict to the negotiating table''.

Air Force destroys LTTE base

Amidst conflicting claims over Wednesday's battle at sea, the Sri Lankan Air Force said its bombers destroyed an LTTE base in the eastern district of Batticaloa today.

The sudden escalation in the fighting came against the backdrop of efforts by Norway to resume peace talks. Reports from Belgium said the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Mr. Thorbjorn Jagland, and the special envoy, Mr. Erik Solheim, called on the President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga, in Brussels on Tuesday. Ms. Kumaratunga is on a tour of Europe.

According to a Government statement, Air Force bombers raided the so-called Beirut Base of the LTTE located in thick jungles approximately 35 km west of Batticaloa town early this morning. Quoting Air Force sources, it said the base was destroyed and ``heavy casualties'' were inflicted on the LTTE.

The base had been in existence since 1990 and was believed to be the nerve centre of LTTE operations in eastern Sri Lanka. It was said to be the main training centre for fresh recruits from the region. The bombing came 24 hours after the LTTE sank a Navy Dvora fast attack craft in Sri Lanka's north-eastern waters. The LTTE clandestine radio Voice of Tigers (VoT) said they also sank another gunboat after stripping it of its arms.

The radio, quoted by the internet site TamilNet, claimed that the LTTE had taken away a 23 mm cannon, a 20 mm cannon, two 40mm grenade launchers, two heavy machine guns and other arms and ammunition from the second Dvora before sinking it.

It said four Sea Tiger cadres were killed in the fighting, but the military said the interception of LTTE radio transmissions had revealed that 15 cadres were killed and the same number wounded.

The military said it was the Sea Tigers who attacked the naval patrol. The Defence Ministry yesterday said it had lost one Dvora and six men, classified as missing. A search operation for the missing is said to be continuing.

The LTTE radio also claimed that four civilians were killed and 11 wounded in an attack mounted by the Air Force and the Navy on the Mullaithivu coast on Wednesday, hours after the fighting at sea.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : International
Previous : Pak. bid to rein in 'jehadi' schools
Next     : Fresh probe against Vaz