Police say three civilians killed in bomb blast in northern Sri Lanka

Associated Press, Tue October 10, 2006 04:23 EDT . - - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels detonated a bomb in northern Sri Lanka - on Tuesday, killing three people and wounding three others, police said.

The bomb, believed to have been hidden in a vehicle, exploded in the northern town of Vavuniya, said Kumara Sandanayake, a local police officer. The blast also damaged a house.

Authorities suspect separatist Tamil rebels were behind the blast, he said.

Vavuniya is the northernmost government-held garrison town before rebel-held territory.

Vehicle bomb kills three in Sri Lanka

Colombo, Oct. 10 (PTI): A bomb exploded inside a passenger van in northern Sri Lanka today killing the driver and two others, police said.

The explosion, which ripped through the mini luxury van, caused extensive damage to a nearby house where two people were killed, police said.

The van had been in police custody for about a month and was released today to the owner pending an inquiry into a road accident.

Police were investigating how the bomb was placed in the van.

Meanwhile, an soldier was killed in an artillery attack carried out by the Tamil Tiger rebels in the northern peninsula of Jaffna this morning, the Defence Ministry said.

Tamil Tigers ready to attend peace talks, as army says 20 rebels killed in fierce battle

Associated Press, Tue October 10, 2006 08:59 EDT COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) The Tamil Tigers will attend peace talks with the Sri Lankan government later this month, but warned they could withdraw if military aggression continues, a report said Tuesday, as the army said it killed 20 rebels in fierce fighting in the northeast. Dozens of army personnel and rebels have been killed since last week in fighting in northeastern Sri Lanka - , with each side accusing the other of initiating the attacks. About 1,500 people have died in increasingly heavy fighting since the last round of talks in February.

Thamilselvan described as unacceptable government claims that all military acts were defensive and in retaliation for violence instigated by the Tamil Tigers.

He urged the government to allow members of the Sri Lanka - Monitoring Mission access to the front lines on the Jaffna peninsula permission, he said, already provided by the rebels so they can ``judge who is the aggressor.''

``It will be too late to pass a final ruling on cease-fire violation after a major aggression has taken place and the entire island is plunged into a full-scale war,'' he added, according to the Web site.

A spokesman for the Nordic cease-fire monitoring mission, Thorfinnur Omarsson, said they are still awaiting government permission, adding that they have received rebel approval but have yet to visit the area.

Meanwhile, military spokesman Brig. Prasad Samarasinghe said troops killed 20 rebels during two days of fighting starting Sunday in northeastern Trincomalee district after the Tigers intensified their activities. He did not elaborate on the rebel activities, but said they posed a threat to a strategic naval base and local residents.

``The army has chased away Tamil Tigers from that area and the army is now dominating the area,'' he told a news conference in Colombo.

There was no immediate comment from the rebels.

Separately, Samarasinghe said one soldier was killed and four wounded when the rebels attacked the military's defense line on the Jaffna peninsula overnight.

The military controls most of the Jaffna peninsula, but small pockets are held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which claim it as the cultural heart of the country's ethnic Tamil minority.

TamilNet said the army has moved rockets, mortar shells and other military hardware from its main Jaffna base to its forward defense lines, closer to rebel-controlled areas.

``Consignments of artillery ammunition, mortar shells, and rockets were rushed in heavy military vehicles'' to several areas along the defense lines, it reported late Monday.

The rebels' political wing said at the weekend that reliable intelligence suggests the military is preparing to launch a major attack on rebel and civilian settlements in the north under a scorched-earth policy.

The military declined to comment Tuesday on the latest report, but has previously said it only retaliates if attacked.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse said Monday that the government remains committed to peace talks, but warned it would be ``compelled to take appropriate counter measures'' to ensure security if the rebel violence continues.

Also Tuesday, suspected rebels detonated a bomb hidden inside a van in Vavuniya, the northernmost government-held garrison town before rebel-held territory, killing three people and wounding three others, said police spokesman Kumara Sandanayake.

The Tigers have been fighting since 1983 for a separate homeland for the Tamil minority in the north and east, citing decades of discrimination by the majority Sinhalese. About 65,000 people were killed before a 2002 cease-fire.

Enough on truce: Time for in-depth talks - Sri Lanka

Tuesday October 10, 2006 - 06:40 EDT. COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka is tired of talks with Tamil Tiger rebels centring on the terms of a 2002 ceasefire, and wants a new round later this month to focus on core issues such as human rights and development, the government said on Tuesday.

Talks between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Geneva in February turned into a slanging match about truce violations. The rebels pulled out of a second round in April and there have been no meetings since.

Hundreds of people have been killed since late July in the worst fighting since the tattered truce was brokered and many feel talks planned in Geneva on Oct. 28-29 are premature.

"We do not want to be trapped within talks about the ceasefire agreement," Defence spokesman and Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told reporters at a weekly briefing.

Tamil Tigers ready for peace talks, but could withdraw if military attacks continue:report

Associated Press, Tue October 10, 2006 06:55 EDT . COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) _ The Tamil Tigers' political chief said Tuesday the rebels will attend peace talks with the Sri Lankan government later this month, but warned they could withdraw if the military continues to launch attacks, a report said.

``We are ready for talks, and agreed to the venue and date,'' Suppiah Thamilselvan said after meeting with Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar in the northern rebel stronghold of Kilinochchi, according to the pro-rebel TamilNet Web site.

``However, if the military aggression continued, we will be forced to reconsider the decision,'' TamilNet quoted him as saying.

Rebel spokesman Daya Master confirmed the meeting, but did not give details.

Dozens of army personnel and rebels have been killed since last week in fighting in northeastern Sri Lanka, with each side accusing the other of initiating the attacks. About 1,500 people have died in increasingly heavy fighting since the last round of talks in February.

Thamilselvan described as unacceptable government claims that all military acts were defensive and retaliatory in response to violence instigated by the Tamil Tigers.

He urged the government to allow members of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission access to the front lines on the northern Jaffna peninsula _ which he said the rebels had already allowed _ so they can ``judge who is the aggressor.''

``It will be too late to pass a final ruling on cease-fire violation after a major aggression has taken place and the entire island is plunged into a full scale war,'' he added.

Earlier Tuesday, government security spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said that President Mahinda Rajapakse at a meeting with ambassadors on Monday said he had asked the Tamil Tigers to give up violence and terrorism, and join the peace process and be a party to democracy.

Rambukwella said Rajapakse wants the peace talks to focus on core-issues including democracy, allowing a multi-party system, pluralism, human rights, child soldier recruitment, development of the north and east and devolution _rather than discussing the 2002 cease-fire agreement.

``It is now high time to get into the substantive and core-issues,'' he said.