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:: SRI LANKA |
Sri Lanka offering overseas jobs to Tamil rebels
Colombo, March 31: The Sri Lankan government said Monday it was contemplating offering overseas jobs to Tamil Tiger rebels who surrendered to the authorities.
Illegal travel to India lands Sri Lankans in trouble
Chennai, March 31: Two Sri Lankans were arrested and another four including a woman detained for questioning Monday off the Rameshwaram coast in Tamil Nadu for trying to enter India illegally, police sources said here.
India worried by Sri Lanka arms buying
New Delhi, March 26: India said Wednesday that it wanted Sri Lanka to treat Tamils with dignity and also voiced concern that Colombo's arms purchases may upset New Delhi's "pre-eminent position" in South Asia.
Sri Lanka values Indian help in battle against LTTE
Colombo, March 25: The Sri Lankan government said Tuesday that India's help was crucial in the island's battle against Tamil Tiger rebels.
Attacks on rebels continue in Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 25: Air, sea and ground attacks on rebels by Sri Lankan security forces continued Tuesday in the northern part of the country as the government claimed that rebels lost as many as 500 cadres in three weeks.
Sinhalese nationalists divided on India
Colombo, March 24 (IANS): Nationalists among Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese community see India as a critical element in their country's affairs. But they are divided on the desirability of allowing India to influence the island's political and economic life.
Sri Lankan troops kill 29 Tamil rebels
Colombo, March 24: Sri Lankan troops continued military offensives in the north, killing at least 29 rebels in the area, despite heavy rain, military officials said Monday.
Tigers' deep sea mines pose new threat to Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 23: The Tamil Tigers' deep sea underwater capability demonstrated off the eastern Sri Lankan coast Saturday might have added a new dimension to the military conflict, The Sunday Times said.
Sri Lankan troops recapture rebel territory in Mannar
Colombo, March 22: An area of a square kilometre in Parayanakulam in Mannar district in northern Sri Lanka, held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), was recaptured by government troops early Saturday, officials said.
Sri Lanka naval craft sunk in explosion, 10 sailors missing
Colombo, March 22: A Navy fast attack craft on a routine patrol off the north-eastern coast of Sri Lanka sank after being caught in a pressure mine explosion Saturday morning, leaving 10 sailors missing, Navy sources said.
21 Tamil rebels killed in Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 2: At least 21 Tamil rebels were killed in sporadic fighting in northern Sri Lanka as government troops continued military operations to recapture rebel-held areas, a military spokesman said Friday.
India for political settlement in Sri Lanka
New Delhi, March 20: There can be no military solution to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, the Indian defence ministry said in its annual report submitted to parliament Thursday.
China denies supplying heavy weapons to Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 20 (IANS): China has reportedly denied supplying heavy weapons to Sri Lankan armed forces fighting Tamil Tiger guerrillas, a Tamil MP said Thursday.
Checking Indian hegemony will be JVP's election plank
Colombo, March 21: The Janatha Vimukti Peramuna (JVP), an ultra nationalist Sri Lankan party, will contest the provincial elections in eastern Sri Lanka to stem what it said was India's bid to impose its "hegemony" on the region.
Army to replace paramilitary force in Sri Lanka's southeast
Colombo, March 21: The Sri Lankan government has decided to replace the paramilitary Special Task Force (STF) by units of the regular army in southeast Sri Lanka, apparently in view of an increasing threat from Tamil Tiger guerrillas.
LTTE sympathisers in Tamil Nadu, Kerala: M K Narayanan
Alappuzha (Kerala), March 16: Small groups of people who sympathise with Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers exist in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan said Sunday.
Sri Lanka nears purchase of MiG-29s
Colombo, March 15 (IANS): Sri Lanka is in advanced talks with Russia to buy five MiG-29 fighter-bomber aircraft, according to Jane's Defence Forecasts.
Sri Lanka slams US on rights report
Colombo, March 14: Sri Lanka Friday slammed the US State Department's report on the human rights situation in the island, saying that it was based on "hearsay, innuendo and exaggeration" and charged that it had thrown a "life line" to the Tamil Tiger terrorists.
Sri Lanka to hold elections in former rebel area
Colombo, March 14: Elections will soon be held in Sri Lanka's eastern province, recently recaptured from the Tamil Tiger rebels by the government forces, officials said Friday.
Sri Lankan TV stops live telecasts protesting violence
Colombo, March 14: Employees of a Sri Lanka's state-run television network Rupavahini Friday stopped all live telecast except news in protest against a series of violent assaults against them in the past two months.
India meddling in Sri Lanka affairs, says JVP
New Delhi, March 14 (IANS): A leader of Sri Lanka's third largest political party asserts that India is again interfering in the country's affairs by forcing Colombo to devolve powers to minorities.
Peaceful polling in eastern Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 11: A new political party comprising those who quit the Tamil Tigers has swept the local body elections in the Tamil-speaking eastern Sri Lankan district of Batticaloa amid accusations of intimidation.
India's military support to Sri Lanka historic blunder: LTTE
Colombo, March 11: The Tamil Tiger rebels Tuesday "strongly" condemned Indian military assistance to Sri Lanka as an "anti-Tamil move" and said Indian military assistance to Sri Lanka would prove to be a "historic blunder".
Sri Lanka to hold eastern provincial elections in May
Colombo, March 12 (IANS): After the successful local body polls in Sri Lanka's war-hit eastern district of Batticaloa, the government has decided to hold elections to the eastern provincial council in May.
31 killed in fighting in northern Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 13: At least 28 Tamil rebels and three soldiers were killed in sporadic fighting in northern Sri Lanka as government troops continued their operations to recapture rebel-held territory, an army spokesman said Thursday.
Prabhakaran, five others charged in Kadirgamar killing
Colombo, March 11: Tamil Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran and five others were Tuesday charge-sheeted in the assassination of Sri Lankan foreign minister Laksman Kadirgamar in 2005.
One killed, six injured in Colombo blast
Colombo, March 10: One person was killed and six others, including four schoolchildren, were injured in a bomb blast in south Colombo Monday morning, the Sri Lankan army spokesperson said.
Peaceful polling in eastern Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 10: Polling in the local body elections in the eastern Sri Lankan Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa went off peacefully Monday, though there were some allegations of vote rigging, sources in the district said.
India planting RAW agents in provincial councils, alleges JVP
Colombo, March 9: India is planning to plant agents of its intelligence agency in the provincial councils to be set up in the Tamil-speaking northeast of Sri Lanka, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), an ultra nationalist political party, has alleged.
On eve of eastern Sri Lanka poll, 34 killed in the north
Colombo, March 10: Nine soldiers and at least 25 Tamil rebels were killed in clashes in northern Sri Lanka as the country's eastern region held its first elections in 14 years, a military spokesman said.
Prabhakaran, Karuna blacked out in east Sri Lankan elections
Colombo, March 8 (IANS): Elections in the eastern Sri Lankan Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa are being fought without any mention of two militant leaders who held sway over the area till the other day.
Clashes kill 12 in northern Sri Lanka
Colombo, March 8: Ten Tamil Tiger rebels and two soldiers were killed in a fierce battle in the north Saturday, Sri Lankan military said.
Tamil MP killed in Sri Lankan mine blast
Colombo, March 6: K. Sivanesan, a Tamil member of the Sri Lankan parliament, was killed Thursday in a claymore mine blast in a Tamil Tiger controlled area in north Sri Lanka.
Eminent persons' group quits Sri Lanka rights abuse probe
Colombo, March 6: A group of eminent international personalities who had been overseeing the Sri Lankan government's efforts to curb human rights abuses Thursday resigned from their role.
Tamil Nadu arrests halt bid to make vessel for LTTE
New Delhi, March 4 (IANS): The arrest of two Sri Lankan Tamils in Tamil Nadu on charges of making a huge boat for the Tamil Tigers has crippled for now the rebels' bid to stealthily make sea-worthy vessels in India.
12 Tigers killed in northern Lanka
Colombo, March 4: The Sri Lankan Army said Tuesday troops captured six Tamil Tiger positions and killed 12 rebels in the north.
Sri Lanka Army chief to pay six-day visit to India
New Delhi, February 29: (IANS) Sri Lanka's army chief Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who has vowed to crush the Tamil Tigers, will pay a six-day visit to India from Sunday to deepen military cooperation between the two countries.
Sri Lankan Supreme Court petitioned to disarm political parties
Colombo, February 29 (IANS): An independent Sri Lankan election monitoring body has gone to court seeking an order to disarm all political parties ahead of the March 10 local body elections in the eastern Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa.
Suicide bomber killed in blast near Colombo harbour
Colombo, February 29: A suspected Tamil Tiger suicide bomber was killed and eight others injured in a blast near the Colombo harbour early Friday.
India leading the 'Right to Protect' pack in South Asia: JVP
Colombo, February 28: A Sri Lankan ultra nationalist party has said that India is at the forefront of a big power campaign to intervene in small and weaker states in South Asia under the guise of protecting human rights and persecuted groups.
Rebels say eight civilians killed by Sri Lankan troops
Colombo, February 28: At least eight civilians were killed Thursday in two claymore mine blast carried out by government troops in northern Sri Lanka, Tamil rebels claimed.
Tamil Tiger rebels in disarray, claims Sri Lankan army
Colombo, February 27: The Sri Lankan military claimed Wednesday that Tamil Tiger rebels are in a state of disarray due to continued government military offensive in the island's north and northeast.
JVP chief loves 'Mother India', but hates its bureaucrats
Colombo, February 27 (IANS): Somawansa Amarasinghe, leader of the ultra nationalist Sri Lankan party Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), loves "Mother India" but hates her bureaucrats.
Top UN official fails to meet Tamil, Muslim parties
Colombo, February 26: A top UN official who was in Sri Lanka to study the worsening ethnic conflict in the island went back Tuesday without meeting leaders of the Tamil and Muslim minorities.
Sri Lankan Buddhist party slams JVP's anti-Indian campaign
Colombo, February 26: A Sri Lankan Buddhist party has condemned the anti-India campaign of the ultra nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) saying that such a campaign will prevent India from supporting the island's fight against Tamil separatists.
Prabhakaran will get fair trial in India: US envoy
Colombo, February 22: Tamil Tiger leader V. Prabhakaran would get a fair trial in India if he were captured and sent to the country to be tried for alleged involvement in the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, says US Ambassador in Sri Lanka Robert Blake.
18 injured in bus blast outside Colombo
Colombo, February 23: At least 18 people were injured when a powerful blast ripped through a passenger bus on the outskirts of the Sri Lankan capital Saturday morning, a defence spokesperson said.
Sri Lankan Air Force bombs rebel base
Colombo, February 23: Sri Lankan Air Force Saturday launched an air strike against a base of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) base in the northern part of the country, a defence ministry official said.
India should help Rajapaksa solve Tamil problem: EPRLF
Colombo, February 23 (IANS): A top leader of a Sri Lankan Tamil political party has said President Mahinda Rajapaksa is eager to solve the long-standing ethnic problem in Sri Lanka and has appealed to India to help him in the task.
14 rebels killed in Sri Lanka fighting
Colombo, Feb 22 (Xinhua) At least 14 Tamil Tiger rebels have been killed in fighting with government troops in north Sri Lanka, the military said Friday.
JVP threatens boycott of Indian goods
Colombo, February 20: An influential Sri Lankan political party has threatened to call for a boycott of goods from India if it continues to "interfere" in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka, The Island daily said.
International Crisis Group asks LTTE to give up separatism
Colombo, February 21 (IANS): An international peace advocacy group has asked the Tamil Tiger rebels to eschew terrorism, formally abandon separatism, and announce an intention to negotiate a political settlement within a united Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan Air Force pounds rebel positions
Colombo, February 21: Sri Lankan Air Force Thursday launched air raids twice against Tamil Tiger rebel positions in the northern part of the country, the military said.
Tamil separatists hail Kosovo's independence declaration
Colombo, February 21 (IANS): Separatist Sri Lankan Tamils have hailed the emergence of an independent Kosovo with Western support, saying it augurs well for the liberation of "oppressed" minorities like the Tamils of northeast Sri Lanka.
UN special envoy arrives in Sri Lanka
Colombo, February 20: A top UN official Wednesday arrived in Sri Lanka for a weeklong fact finding mission, foreign ministry officials said.
Three Sri Lankan soldiers killed in rebel attack
Colombo, February 20: Three soldiers were killed by suspected Tamil rebels in south-eastern Sri Lanka Wednesday as fighting between government troops and rebels continued in the northern part of the country, military officials said.
India's covert role in Sri Lanka's ceasefire (Breaking News)
New Delhi, February 17 (IANS): Now that Sri Lanka has jettisoned the Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) with the Tamil Tigers, one of India's best kept secrets can be revealed: it was New Delhi that quietly authored the process that led to the Norway-brokered pact.
Prabhakaran critically injured last year: Sri Lanka air chief
Colombo, February 16: Tamil Tiger chief Velupillai Prabhakaran was "critically injured" in an air raid on Nov 26, 2007, said Air Marshal Roshan Goonetilleke, commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF).
Sri Lanka gets negative economic rating from S&P
Colombo, February 16: Standard and Poor's rating services downgraded Sri Lanka's economy from "stable" to "negative", citing poor revenue collection, high deficits, runaway inflation and heavy indebtedness.
No LTTE infiltration, says top cop. Others wonder
New Delhi, February 12: Tamil Nadu Police chief P. Rajendran's claim that there is no infiltration into his state by Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers has raised some eyebrows in the Indian security establishment. Some of his colleagues too want to know why he has said what he is reported to have said.
Tamil Tigers shell church, killing six soldiers
Colombo, February 13: Six soldiers were killed and 10 injured when Tamil Tiger guerrillas fired artillery shells at a church in northwestern Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka to take up sea attack issue with India
Colombo, February 13: The chief of the Sri Lankan Navy is to take up the issue of an attack against a Sri Lankan naval ship from a flotilla of Indian fishing boats, a government spokesman here said Wednesday.
180 Sri Lankan civilians killed in six weeks of violence
Colombo, February 13: More than 180 civilians, including women and school-going children, were killed in bomb blasts in the last six weeks in Sri Lanka, the Red Cross said Wednesday.
45 rebels, 10 soldiers killed in Sri Lanka fighting
Colombo, February 12: At least 45 Tamil rebels and 10 government soldiers were killed in heavy fighting in the northern Sri Lanka, military officials said Most of the combat was reported in the northwestern Mannar district, but fighting was also heard in Vavuniya and Welioya areas, northeast of the capital. All areas of fighting are more than 300 km away from the capital.
US warns nationals against taking buses, trains in Sri Lanka
Colombo, February 11: The US State Department has "strongly" advised Americans not to travel by buses or trains in Sri Lanka in view of a series of terrorist strikes at the public transport system in the island in recent weeks.
Sri Lanka may be heading for military stalemate
Sri Lankan leaders are gung-ho about capturing by the year-end the country's northern regions the Tamil Tigers now control. But ground realities do not match the optimism, say military observers who are predicting a military stalemate rather than an outright victory for either party.
Tamil Tigers cannot be crushed: Sri Lanka MP
New Delhi, February 8 (IANS): Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger guerrillas can never be vanquished militarily, a visiting Tamil MP has said, calling for an Indian role to bring peace to the island nation.
At least 14 killed in Sri Lanka fighting
Colombo, February 8: At least 12 Tamil Tiger rebels and two government soldiers were killed Friday when the army mounted an offensive in the north, Sri Lankan military said.
India urged to end military support to Sri Lanka
New Delhi, February 7: Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony was urged by a group of Indian Tamils to end military support to Sri Lanka, saying it was worsening the situation in the island.
Did LTTE attack Sri Lankan navy from Indian trawler?
Tamil Tiger guerrillas attacked the Sri Lankan navy off Talaimannar in the northwest using a hijacked Indian fishing boat, a spokesman for the navy said Wednesday. But Indian authorities believe the firing was not done from an Indian boat but from a Tamil Tiger vessel.
LTTE targets power transformers near Colombo
Colombo, February 6: A powerful bomb damaged a 330,000 KW electricity substation near the Sri Lankan capital early Wednesday, another indication that terrorism is taking a new form with Tamil Tigers hitting soft economic targets to disrupt life in the island country.
Tigers fire at Sri Lanka Navy from among Indian boats
Chennai/Colombo, February 5 (IANS): In a menacing development, a Tamil Tiger squad mingled among Indian fishing boats and fired rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) at the Sri Lankan Navy damaging a vessel, officials said Tuesday. Indian fishermen caught in the firing in the sea amid darkness Monday evening returned to the Tamil Nadu shore with harrowing tales, Indian military officials told IANS from the port town of Rameshwaram.
13 killed in blasts on Sri Lanka's Independence Day
Colombo, February 4: At least 13 people were killed and 21 injured in two bomb blasts as Sri Lanka observed the 60th anniversary of its independence under a tight security blanket and the shadow of political rivalries. Hours after President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared here that the security forces were notching up "unprecedented victories" in the war against the Tamil Tigers, a powerful roadside bomb ripped apart a passenger bus at the Kobbekaduwa junction near Janakapura in the Weli Oya region of northeast Sri Lanka.
Rajapaksa claims international support for fight against LTTE
Colombo, February 4: President Mahinda Rajapaksa claims Sri Lanka enjoys the trust of its neighbours and unflinching support of the international community in its fight against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terrorist group. In his speech at the main function to celebrate the island nation's 60th Independence Day here Monday, Rajapaksa said: "Our neighbours trust us and the international community's confidence in us has not been reduced one iota."
60 years later, Sri Lanka still in search of an identity
Sixty years after it peacefully got independence from Britain, Sri Lanka is still battling with fundamental issues relating to its unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Torn by ethnic strife, terrorism, insurgencies and endemic political disunity, the island country's nearly 20 million people are yet to develop a "Sri Lankan identity", sociologists and academics say.
20 killed in horrific Sri Lanka bus blast, LTTE blamed
Colombo, February 2: A powerful bomb ripped through a passenger bus in central Sri Lanka killing at least 20 people and injuring 50 on February 2nd, two days before the country marks 60 years of independence.
11 killed in Colombo railway station blast
Colombo, February 3: Tragedy struck Sri Lanka when a blast at Colombo's main railway station killed 11 people and injured 103 Sunday - the eve of the country's 60th Independence Day.
FTA transforms India-Sri Lanka relations
The free trade agreement (FTA) between India and Sri Lanka has radically transformed their relationship, replacing mutually debilitating confrontation by peaceful co-existence, trade, investment and tourism.
US blames Tamil Tigers for Sri Lanka blasts
Colombo, February 3: The US "strongly" condemned the bomb blasts in Sri Lanka and blamed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for the attacks just ahead of the country's independence day.
Sri Lanka to screen trains, buses from north
Colombo, February 3: Sri Lanka on Sunday said that buses coming from the troubled north would be stopped at the border between the Tamil-dominated region and the Sinhalese-speaking south, following the blast at Colombo's main railway station that killed 11 people and injured over 100.
Rajapaksa third best leader of free Sri Lanka: survey
Colombo, February 3 (IANS): President Mahinda Rajapaksa is the third best among Sri Lanka's leaders since the country became independent in 1948, shows a survey.
Conducted in January by Nielsen and the Sunday Times newspaper, the survey shows that Rajapaksa is number three, with 21 percent of the 519 respondents preferring him to other leaders, past and present.
Japan not to suspend aid to Sri Lanka
Colombo, February 1: Japan has told Sri Lanka that it has no plans to suspend development aid to the island nation as reported in the international media.
Sri Lanka: Where journalists live dangerously
Sri Lankan journalists are going through a trying period. Government leaders are taking a hard line on media freedom, with even senior media persons facing death threats and murderous assaults.
India trying to stop Sri Lanka from defeating LTTE: JVP
Colombo, January 31: A radical Sri Lankan nationalist party leader has accused India of trying to stop the Sri Lankan Army from defeating the Tamil Tiger rebels militarily.
Army mine kills 17 civilians in Sri Lanka: Tamil rebels
Colombo, January 29: At least 11 school children were among 17 civilians killed and 17 wounded when an army unit triggered off a claymore mine explosion on a bus in a rebel controlled area in northwest Sri Lanka, a pro-rebel website said Tuesday.
Sri Lanka denies hand in blast, LTTE appeals to UN
Colombo, January 30 (IANS): Sri Lanka Wednesday denied responsibility for a bus blast in the island's rebel-held north that killed 18 civilians including 12 children. But the Tamil Tigers have told the UN that the army committed the outrage. "The blast took place in an area controlled by the LTTE terrorists. Our troops do not operate there," the government's defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said here.
Sri Lanka army destroys 20 LTTE bunkers in Jaffna
Colombo, January 30: The Sri Lankan army Wednesday smashed through the forward defence lines of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels over a wide area in the northern district of Jaffna.
India is among the largest investors in Sri Lanka
India has emerged as one of the largest foreign investors in Sri Lanka, with a commitment of over $200 million since 2000. There are signs $364 million will be added to this soon, if some prestigious projects fructify.
Indian tourists keep Sri Lankan tourist industry afloat
Colombo, January 29 (IANS): Tourist arrivals from India and Britain are keeping Sri Lanka's tourist industry afloat amid war and hostile travel advisories from several Western countries.
India pats devolution package to make Sri Lanka do more
New Delhi, January 27 (IANS): India's surprise decision to hail a truncated Sri Lankan devolution package is aimed at slowly pushing Colombo on to the path of power sharing to end decades of ethnic conflict.
At least 15 killed in Sri Lanka fighting
Colombo, January 28: At least 14 Tamil Tiger rebels and one soldier were killed in clashes between the government troops and the rebels in the northern Mannar district, Sri Lankan military said.
JVP questions Indian 'influence' on Rajapaksa
Colombo, January 28: A radical Sinhalese Marxist party wants India to clarify if it influenced the Sri Lankan government's move to finally implement a controversial constitutional amendment in a bid to resolve the ethnic conflict.
Sri Lankan Air Force retaliates LTTE's artillery fire
Colombo, January 28: The Sri Lankan Air Force Monday mounted an offensive on a Tamil Tigers base to retaliate the rebels' artillery fire in the northern Jaffna peninsula Monday morning, defence officials said here.
37 Tamil rebels killed in Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 27: At least 37 Tamil tiger rebels were killed in fierce fighting with the government soldiers since Saturday, a defence official said.
Jailed Karuna implicates Sri Lankan government
Colombo, January 26: The controversial breakaway Tamil Tiger leader "Colonel" Karuna, who has been found guilty of being in Britain on a false Sri Lankan diplomatic passport, has implicated the Sri Lankan government.
Lankan defence chief denies helping Karuna go to Britain
Colombo, January 27: Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has denied he helped breakaway Tamil Tiger leader "Colonel" Karuna get a forged diplomatic passport to go to Britain.
Prabhakaran in India to recuperate from wounds?
Chennai, January 25 (IANS): Rumours of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) supremo V. Prabhakaran having crossed the Palk Straits to India to recuperate from wounds sent the Tamil Nadu police into a tizzy.
Rebel Tamil leader Karuna gets nine months' jail in London
Colombo, January 25: A British court Friday sentenced the controversial breakaway Tamil Tiger leader, 'Colonel' Karuna, to nine months in prison for travelling on a false Sri Lankan passport.
Opposition, Tamil groups slam Sri Lanka's devolution proposal
Colombo, January 25: Sri Lanka's main opposition and dominant Tamil party have denounced a proposal by a panel suggesting devolution of powers to provinces as a "deception" and a "farce".
1987 pact with India to be implemented: Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 24 (IANS): Sri Lanka said on Thursday that the recommendations of an all-party panel on devolution of power to the provinces reflected a collective resolve to fully implement the India-Sri Lanka Accord of 1987.
Sri Lanka devolution panel to suggest only administrative changes
Colombo, January 23 (IANS): The report of the Sri Lankan panel on devolution of powers, which is to be submitted to President Mahinda Rajapaksa Wednesday, will suggest only "administrative changes" and avoid recommending any "structural alterations" in the country's constitution.
All parties moot interim political council in north Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 24 (IANS): An all-party panel tasked to work out a devolution package for Sri Lanka has recommended the setting up of an "interim political council" in the war-affected and Tamil-speaking northern province, a Tamil cabinet minister said Thursday.
Tamil Tigers deny air force bombing claim
Colombo, January 24: Tamil rebels have denied a claim by the Sri Lanka air force that they bombed a key rebel base in the northern part of the country regularly visited by Tamil leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.
Sri Lankan Air Force bombs LTTE leader's hideout
Colombo, January 23: The Sri Lankan military said its air force bombed a hideout of Tamil Tigers chief Velupillai Prabhakaran in the north Wednesday and it believed he was there when the bombing took place
US voices doubts about free polls in eastern Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 23: US ambassador Robert O. Blake on Wednesday expressed doubts if the upcoming local elections in Sri Lanka's eastern Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa would be free and fair.
LTTE man's arrest for abduction plan first since 1991
New Delhi, January 18: The arrest of a Tamil Tiger operative on charges of planning the abduction from India of a prominent Sri Lankan Tamil politician is the first time the rebels have gone this far since the 1991 killing of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Tamil Tigers strike terror in Sinhalese heartland
Colombo, January 18 (IANS): In the new phase of the Sri Lankan war following the abrogation of the ceasefire agreement, Tamil Tiger rebels are systematically terrorising villagers in the deep south of the country, the heartland of the majority Sinhalese community.
Rajapaksa restricts devolution panel's mandate
Colombo, January 20 (IANS): An all-party panel in Sri Lanka is set to reject the Tamil minority's demand for a federal constitution while suggesting improvements in the present unitary system to make it more democratic.
Global concern over maritime security cripples LTTE
Colombo, January 21 (IANS): Heightened global and regional cooperation to increase maritime security is adversely affecting the fighting capabilities of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on sea and land, military experts say.
Six civilians killed by suspected Tamil rebels in Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 18: Six civilians were killed and a paramilitary guard was injured in an ambush by suspected Tamil rebels in a remote village in south-eastern Sri Lanka which had been infiltrated by the rebels, military sources said Friday.
Japan gives veiled warning to warring Sri Lanka
Japan has given Sri Lanka a veiled warning that it may review relations if Colombo merely continues the war against the Tamil Tiger rebels without trying hard to find a political solution to the ethnic problem through negotiations with all stakeholders.
No ban on LTTE now, Sri Lanka tells Japan
Reacting to the veiled warning from Tokyo, the Sri Lankan government told the Japanese envoy that it does not contemplate banning the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) at present, though the ceasefire agreement (CFA) with the rebel group is set to formally end Wednesday.
LTTE will be defeated by year-end: Sri Lanka Army chief
The Sri Lankan Army Commander, Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, has said that the Tamil Tiger rebels will be militarily defeated before he retires from service at the end of this year. "I do not want to leave this problem to the next army commander," the general, who would be retiring in December, told newspersons in Colombo on January 11th.
'Ruthless' LTTE inspired Al Qaeda in Iraq, says FBI
The "ruthless tactics" of the Sri Lankan Tamil Tigers have inspired terrorist networks worldwide, including the Al Qaeda in Iraq, says the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Colombo should accommodate India's security concerns: JVP
Colombo, January 13 (IANS): India should avoid the mistakes of the past while Sri Lanka should accommodate New Delhi's security concerns in the spirit of "true friendship" between the two neighbours, the leader of Sri Lanka's radical Marxist party Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) has said.
Rajapaksa says India-Sri Lanka accord can solve ethnic issue
Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa has said the India-Sri Lanka accord of 1987 offers the best solution for the ethnic problem in his country.
Sri Lankan military says 66 rebels killed in north
Colombo, January 13 (Xinhua): At least 66 Tamil Tiger rebels have been killed in Sri Lanka's northern districts as heavy fighting between the government troops and rebels continued, the military has said.
Sri Lanka says it's committed to resolving ethnic crisis
Colombo, January 13 (Xinhua): The Sri Lankan government has reiterated its commitment to a political solution amid Western concerns over its announcement of withdrawal from a troubled ceasefire agreement with the Tamil Tigers.
Continue with Norway's help for peace, donors tell Sri Lanka
Colombo, January 13 (IANS): Disturbed by Sri Lanka's rapid slide into a full-scale war, international donors have asked the government to continue with Norwegian facilitation and accept monitoring of human rights abuses by the United Nations.
LTTE military intelligence chief killed by Sri Lankan commandos
Colombo, January 6: The Tamil Tiger rebels suffered yet another major blow on Saturday, when the chief of their military intelligence, Shanmuganathan Ravishankar alias Col. Charles, and three of his lieutenants, were killed in a Sri Lankan army ambush in Mannar in northwest Sri Lanka, the defence ministry announced Sunday. Confirming the death of Charles, the pro-Tiger website Tamilnet said that a Deep Penetration Unit of the army had set off a claymore mine between Iluppaikadavai and Paalamadu on seeing the foursome travelling in a van.
Rajapaksa's foreign policy advisor quits
Colombo, January 6: Jayantha Dhanapala, senior advisor to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on foreign affairs, resigned Sunday, citing "personal reasons". There was much speculation in Colombo about why the veteran diplomat resigned at this juncture. Dhanapala himself was not in the country to answer queries, but his former colleagues at the government peace secretariat told IANS that he was pressed for time.
Ceasefire abrogation to benefit LTTE: Ranil
Colombo, January 7: Sri Lankan opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe has said the only beneficiaries of the government's abrogation of the 2002 ceasefire agreement would be the Tamil Tigers.
Sri Lanka slams Nordic claim that truce saved 10,000 lives
Colombo, January 7: Sri Lanka has slammed a claim by the Nordic countries that the now abrogated Ceasefire Agreement with the Tamil Tigers had saved 10,000 Sri Lankan lives.
Karuna group quits anti-LTTE alliance in Batticaloa
Colombo, January 7 (IANS): The recently forged anti-Tamil Tiger political alliance in the eastern Sri Lankan Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa has split.
Rajapaksa wants to liberate Tamils from LTTE
Colombo, January 8: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has appealed to the people of the country to help him liberate the Tamil-speaking people of north Sri Lanka from the clutches of the Tamil Tigers. "Kindly grant me the opportunity to liberate the innocent and miserable masses of the north who are in grave and imminent danger at the hands of the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)," the state-owned Daily News quoted the president as saying at Hungama in southern Sri Lanka on Monday.
Obama calls Sri Lanka's civil war vicious
Colombo, January 9 (IANS): The Sri Lankan ethnic issue has entered the US presidential campaign with Democratic Party contender Barack Obama saying that the conflict in the island is a "vicious civil war". In an interview to candidates@google, Obama said that conflicts, such as those in Sri Lanka and Northern Ireland, stemmed from the inability of people to accommodate others who were not like them.
Spiking Sri Lanka peace pact will have 'consequences': Norway
New Delhi, January 3: Sri Lanka's decision to scrap its ceasefire agreement (CFA) with the Tamil Tigers will have "negative consequences" and only spark more violence, warned a Norwegian minister who helped broker the truce in 2002.
US stops military supplies to Sri Lanka, Colombo unfazed
Colombo, January 4: The US said Thursday that it had stopped the supply of military equipment and services to Sri Lanka under the Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriation Act 2008. But an unfazed Colombo said that its critical needs could still be met under exemptions provided by the act.
Colombo snubbed as PM Singh declines I-Day invitation
Colombo, January 6: India has officially told Sri Lanka that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is unable to accept the invitation to attend the island's 60th independence day celebrations on February 4, because of prior commitments.
Sri Lanka to re-define Norway's role in peace process
Colombo, January 4: Sri Lanka has said that Norway will continue to be part of the peace process but its role will have to be "re-defined" following the abrogation of the ceasefire agreement (CFA) Oslo helped draft in 2002.
Truce saved 10,000 Sri Lankan lives, say Nordic minister
Colombo, January 5: Foreign ministers of five Nordic countries, which had contributed truce monitors to Sri Lanka, have claimed that the ceasefire agreement (CFA), which the Sri Lankan government abrogated earlier this week, had saved an estimated 10,000 lives in the first three years of its existence.
Only military might will correct situation, says LTTE
Colombo, January 4: The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has indicated that only a demonstration of its military might will change the present international climate in its favour.
Sri Lanka will consider talks if LTTE lays down arms
Colombo, January 3: The Sri Lankan government said Thursday that it would consider peace talks if the guerrillas laid down arms and came to the negotiating table.
"We have not closed the door for talks," cabinet spokesman Anura Priyadarshana Yapa told the media here.
Sri Lanka gained upper hand over LTTE in 2007
Sri Lanka's failure to unveil a political package to end years of war and its military successes against the Tamil Tigers marked the highlights of one of the world's longest running conflicts in 2007.
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