Surface to air missile 

Suresh Sriskandarajah, 26, one of the LTTE supporters arrested in Canada is likely to face an extradition hearing. A statement given by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Sgt. Michele Paradis to a news report in CTV INC., a leading Canadian broadcasting company, revealed this. 

LTTE supporters likely to face exile

Written by Administrator

Thursday, 24 August 2006

Sriskandarajah along with his Canadian counterparts Sarachandran, Sabaratnam, and Thanigasalam were planning to illegally purchase and smuggle out weapons to LTTE. Six of the nine Canadians and Americans charged appeared in court on Monday and were held without bail. According to CTV reports the arm dealers these LTTE supporters were dealing with were actually under-cover agents working for the FBI.

American authorities allege that these men were traveling to New York from Canada to buy missiles, launchers and AK-47s.

The news also states that these LTTE supporters were planning to buy $900,000 worth military hardware from the black market of NY.

ImageThese men, when questioned by the security officials, have said they were going to attend a bachelor’s party in Buffalo, New York. It is also reported that the suspects were engaged in this sting operation that began more than a year ago and extended it to ten more countries, including Canada. Sriskandarajah, an engineering student of University of Waterloo, has been forcing Tamil students living there to promote LTTE by distributing leaflets hidden in toy teddy bears.

According to FBI special agents’ comments to CTV, as these men were playing a major role in the fund raisings, this arrest would make a significant negative impact on the LTTE campaigns.

Three of these LTTE supporters were arrested in New York on last week Friday (18) and the other one on Monday (21) at Kitchener, Ontario.

Concurrently US government arrested another five American Tamils associated with this banned act. These men were also arrested with multiple charges including fundraising for the banned terrorist oraganisation (LTTE), illegal weapon smuggling and trying to bribe US officials to lift US ban on the LTTE.

Canadian government added the LTTE to its official list of terrorist organizations in April this year and US added to its own list in 1997.

Sriskandharajah appeared on Tuesday in a court in Kitchener, Ontario and scheduled to appear again tomorrow, Friday.

LTTE denies links with U.S. arrests

This is not our way of operating, say Tigers

COLOMBO: The LTTE has maintained that it has no connection with the eight persons arrested by the U.S. authorities on charges of attempting to mobilise military and material support for it.

"We have no connection with the people arrested and this is not our way of operating. We have never done like this before," the LTTE said on phone from Kilinochichi in a bland response to the news which has been splashed in a big way in the local and foreign media.

On Monday, the U.S. charged eight men with providing material support to the Tigers. The U.S. Justice Department said some of the charges against them were hatching a conspiracy to buy surface-to-air missiles, attempting to bribe U.S. officials to have the LTTE removed from a list of terrorist organisations and obtaining classified intelligence.

Curfew lifted

As the fighting continued in the Jaffna peninsula, though on a reduced scale, the Government lifted the 10-day old curfew in a phased manner in Jaffna and other conflict affected areas in the North.

Defence spokesman and Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told journalists here that a ship with 3,800 tonnes of food, medical and many basic goods was sailing towards the North. "The Government decided to take the sea route as it is far safer than by land. LTTE launches attacks on whatever they come across even an unarmed ship transporting basic necessities to serve the civilians," he said. The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission said the situation in Sri Lanka continued to be very unstable.

Rebel group funded congressman's trip to Sri Lanka, sources say

WASHINGTON - Illinois congressman Danny Davis and an aide took a trip to Sri Lanka last year that was paid for by the Tamil Tigers, a group that the U.S. government has designated as a terrorist organization for its use of suicide bombers and child soldiers, law enforcement sources said.

Davis' seven-day trip came under new scrutiny this week following the arrests of 11 supporters of the organization on charges of participating in a broad conspiracy to support the terrorist group through money laundering, arms procurement and bribery of U.S. officials.

The five-term Democratic congressman said he was unaware that the Tigers paid for the trip and on his required congressional disclosure form he reported that the trip was paid for by a Hickory Hills, Ill.-based Tamil cultural organization, the Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America.

During the visit, Davis spent most of his time in a region controlled by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, as the group is formally known, and visited the organization's political headquarters. He also met with a police chief for the region appointed by the Tigers.

The Tamil Tigers is a separatist group that has been fighting since 1983 for an independent state for 3.2 million ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka, a tear-shaped island nation of 20 million off the southern tip of India. In addition to conventional guerrilla tactics, the group has used terrorist methods, including 200 suicide bombings, in a bloody conflict that has claimed more than 60,000 lives. Though the violence between the government and the separatist group abated during the past several years, it recently surged again, threatening a renewed civil war.

Davis said he believed that the trip, from March 30 to April 5, 2005, was paid for by the Tamil federation, which in accordance with congressional ethics rules sent him a written statement of the travel expenses, more than $7,000 each for Davis and his aide, Daniel Cantrell. Davis said he knew that the group was "associated" with the Tamil Tigers but did not realize that the trip's costs were covered with funds controlled by the rebel group.

"I know who I got the trip from," Davis said. "I don't know if any clandestine group gave them money. All I know is what I saw and was told."

He also said that he had not been contacted by federal investigators in connection with the trip.

He defended the trip, saying he traveled there at the behest of ethnic Tamils who live in his Chicago congressional district so that he could examine charges that the region was not receiving an equitable share of relief funding sent to Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the December 2004 tsunami. Davis has been harshly critical of the Sri Lankan government's treatment of the Tamil minority.

"Since I have an interest in human rights and since I have a tendency to kind of favor the underdog, I went at their request to take a look," Davis said. "I don't regret taking the trip. I have a much better understanding of the situation than prior to going."

As recently as this past Saturday, Davis talked in Chicago with a supporter of the Tamil Tigers who was among 11 people arrested on charges of conspiring to aid the rebel group through money laundering, procurement of arms, including surface-to-air missiles, and bribery of public officials.

That Tamil Tiger supporter, Murugesu Vinayagamoorthy, was described in a federal criminal complaint as a high-level operative who served as an intermediary between the Tigers' leaders and foreign backers. The complaint charges that he offered a $1 million bribe to an undercover FBI agent posing as a State Department official in an attempt to remove the Tamil Tigers' designation as a terrorist organization.

Davis said he first met Vinayagamoorthy, a 57-year-old London physician, at a Tamil cultural event in the Chicago suburbs at which both of them gave speeches "a few years ago." Vinayagamoorthy also participated in several of the meetings that Davis held while visiting Sri Lanka, the congressman said.

The Tamil supporter contacted the congressman's office again last week seeking a chance to brief Davis on events in Sri Lanka, where violence between the government and Tamil Tigers has flared anew. Vinayagamoorthy arranged to do so while walking alongside Davis Saturday for 10 blocks during the congressman's annual "Back to School" Parade in Chicago, Davis said.

The criminal complaint against Vinayagamoorthy asserts that he had "direct and frequent contact" with leaders of the rebel group and was "often dispatched" to facilitate Tamil Tiger projects around the world.

Without mentioning Davis or his aide by name, the complaint describes a series of transactions in which Vinayagamoorthy and others charged in the case allegedly laundered $13,150 in Tamil Tiger funds at the direction of a top guerilla leader to pay for travel of "two individuals" to Tamil-controlled Sri Lanka. The two individuals were Davis and Cantrell, law enforcement officials said.

Another person arrested in the case, Nachimuthu Socrates, was listed as a director in 2004 of the Tamil cultural organization which Davis listed in public disclosure forms as the trip's sponsor, the Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America. Representatives of the federation did not return phone messages on Wednesday.

Davis said he always assumed that the organization had a connection with the Tamil Tigers.

"I knew that they were associated with the Tamil Tigers, yes," he said.

Davis has been an outspoken supporter of the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka.

This month, he issued a statement condemning an Aug.14 Sri Lankan Air Force bombing in Tamil-controlled territory that reportedly killed dozens of girls.

Davis' statement said the facility was an orphanage he had visited during his 2005 trip to Sri Lanka. The government said the site was a former orphanage being used as an LTTE training camp for female recruits.

"We've been engaged," Davis said. "There hasn't been anything clandestine about our position."

Davis has been one of the most prolific travelers in Congress, accepting 47 trips paid for by private groups since 2000. That total ranks Davis 15th among the 535 members of Congress, according to Political Moneyline, a nonpartisan watchdog group that compiles data from congressional disclosure forms.

The Tamil Tigers were designated by the State Department as a foreign terrorist organization in 1997. As a result, federal law bars providing them funding, arms or other material support.

The FBI searched a residence Sunday in Glendale Heights, Ill., in connection with the Tamil Tiger investigation, according to Ross Rice, a spokesman for the bureau's Chicago office. No arrests were made and no criminal charges have been filed as a result of the raid, Rice said.

Aid agency worker shot to death in eastern Sri Lanka , military says

Associated Press, Thu August 24, 2006 07:42 EDT . - - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels Thursday fatally shot an ethnic Sinhalese man working for a New Zealand-funded aid agency in troubled eastern Sri Lanka - , the Defense Ministry said. Sri Lanka - 's four-year cease-fire has nearly collapsed with renewed fighting in the northeast, killing hundreds of people and tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced, prompting local and international aid agencies to warn of a growing humanitarian crisis.

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebels have fought since 1983 to create a separate state for the country's minority Tamils citing decades of discrimination by the majority Sinhalese-dominated state.

More than 65,000 people have been killed in the insurgency.

The 2002 cease-fire brokered by Norway temporarily halted the bloodshed, but the past few months have seen renewed fighting in the north and east, where the rebels want to establish a separate state.

The international community has called for an immediate end to the hostilities and a return to the peace process that faltered earlier this year when the rebels refused to attend a round of peace talks in Geneva, Switzerland

Sri Lankan air force strikes rebel sea base as government discusses peace

Associated Press, Thu August 24, 2006 03:05 EDT . COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Sri Lanka - 's air force launched strikes on a Tamil Tiger rebel sea base in the northeast Thursday in an operation the military described as ``successful.'' There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. A recent escalation of violence between government forces and the insurgents has returned Sri Lanka - to a war footing, with some of the fiercest fighting since the two sides signed a cease-fire four years ago.

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera told Parliament during a debate on the conflict Wednesday that since then, other rebel leaders have broken promises to end the violence.

Rambukwella, the government spokesman, said any new cease-fire agreement would need to have clear conditions written into it, such as restricting the Tigers' access to the sea.

``We have areas that are very vulnerable and we cannot have them pounding our naval headquarters in eastern Trincomalee,'' he said.

Military spokesman Brig. Prasad Samarasinghe earlier said there were no major incidents overnight in the northern Jaffna Peninsula, which the insurgents made a major push to recapture on Aug. 11.

In the east, suspected rebels fired at an army checkpoint early Thursday in Batticaloa district, injuring one soldier, while a police officer was killed by a mine explosion overnight in eastern Valachchenai, he said. ``It was a quiet night,'' Samarasinghe said.

The Tigers have been fighting for over 20 years for a separate homeland for the country's ethnic minority Tamils. More than 65,000 people have been killed in the insurgency.

The 2002 cease-fire temporarily halted the bloodshed, but the past few months have seen renewed fighting in the north and east, where the rebels want to establish their separate state.

Hundreds of people have been killed in the recent violence and tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced, prompting local and international aid agencies to warn of a growing humanitarian crisis.

The international community has called for an immediate end to the hostilities and a return to the peace process that faltered earlier this year when the rebels refused to attend a round of peace talks in Geneva, Switzerland.

Samaraweera accused the Tigers of initiating the renewed fighting in late June by blocking a water source supplying thousands of people living in government-controlled areas. The move prompted the military to launch its first ground offensive since the 2002 cease-fire.

The Tigers say they acted because the government had failed to honor a promise to provide water to rebel-held areas, and that the government turned the water dispute into a ``military issue.''

Sri Lankan Politicians make money from misery

Colombo, August 19, 2006, 7.11 p.m.. Sri Lanka's politicians are masterminds when it comes to making businesses out of calamities; the tsunami and even the recent eruption in Muttur are just two such examples.

Politicians often attempt to always score points whenever a catastrophe befalls their people. Apart from promising the masses the sun, moon and stars, some politicians, such as some of our ministers try to sound a bit more realistic and pledge to provide lunch packets in the thousands, but more than five days later after the pledge was made initially, no lunch packet let alone even a piece of stale bread has arrived.

When we contacted this minister to question him why he had not stuck to his promise of delivering 1000 lunch packets to the displaced he replied, "what nonsense! I initially promised 1000 packets but actually gave 20,000 lunch packets courtesy government money which cost Rs. 5 lakhs," he claimed.

Meanwhile, while the government claims that it has already dispatched 'more than enough' food items such as rice and dry rations, almost all the organizations currently actively engaging in relief work at camps in Kantale which according to estimates is housing about 40,000 displaced civilians, categorically refute such claims.

General Secretary of the Muslim Council of Sri Lanka M. D. M. Rizvi said that if the government had actually sent out the food items, and if the Kantale Government officer had received these items, why was he silent during a meeting presided over by presidential advisor Basil Rajapakse in Kantale mid this week, when organizations actively involved in providing relief to the displaced levelled charges that no government relief had been provided to the victims?.

"The rhetorical promises are continuing. Some politicians have come and promised 400 toilets to the displaced, some food items, while other political parties have put up notices on their websites requesting aid to help the victims, but these are only political ploys. Not a single promise has so far materialized," Mr. Rizvi, who represents MCSL, a network comprising more than 58 of Sri Lanka's largest and most influential Muslim civil organizations, said.Meanwhile, while acknowledging that there were shortcomings in the relief efforts launched by the government, Muslim Minister A.H.M. Fowzie categorically denied charges levelled against the government to the effect that 'no relief including food had reached the displaced.

"These are all lies. Food items have been dispatched already. Meanwhile, steps are also being taken to reconstruct the infrastructure such as the laying of fresh electricity and telephone lines, rebuilding of damaged houses and other buildings. Our aim is to create a good environment, better than before, so that this would attract the displaced to their original homes once again," Minister Fowzie claimed.

Shortage of proper health facilities and basic sanitation has meanwhile led to at least 50 of the displaced victims suffering from diahrroca, Muslim Aid country director Amjad Mohammed Saleem said. He also disclosed that due to the excess dusty conditions prevailing in the Kantale camps even aid workers and volunteers are beginning to fall sick with respiratory diseases.

Sri Lankans in California demand UNICEF action against LTTE child conscription

Colombo, August 19, 2006, 7.10 p.m.. Saffron-robed Buddhist monks, saree-clad women, and men carrying children's coffins were among the hundreds of demonstrators who rallied for two hours recently outside the Federal Building in Westwood, California demanding that UNICEF take action to bring the leaders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to face charges for war crimes against children.

The escalation of tension between the LTTE and government security forces in recent months has led to an intensified drive by the Tigers to recruit children, which in turn is forcing hundreds of families to flee their homes.

Rallying under the banner of the local expatriate activist group 'Sri Lankan Patriots,' protesters called on UNICEF Director Ann M. Veneman to follow the United Nations' own resolutions and to invoke international laws such as the Rome Statute to bring the Tiger leaders before the International Criminal Court for conscripting children as combatants.

Spokesperson for the group Hassina Leelarathna said that as the world's leading children's organization UNICEF has failed in its attempts for over a decade to stop the recruitment of children in the island's north and east from the predominant Tamil militant group the LTTE. The UN agency is also accused of compromising the welfare of the children by cooperating with the LTTE - a view shared by the leading rights group Human Rights Watch.

"There is overwhelming evidence that the LTTE has conscripted children, some as young as ten, including tsunami victims, and we are demanding that UNICEF take the steps needed to bring the LTTE before the International Court, so similar punitive action may be taken against this group that has openly flouted international norms for the past twenty years," she said.

Buddhist monk Rev. Aparekke Punyasiri of the Maithri Buddhist Meditation Center said the August 5 rally is being organized in the face of the LTTE's intensified recruitment drive in recent weeks. "We cannot ignore the plight of hundreds of Sri Lankan children. It is urgent that we act now," he said.

Sri Lankan air force says rebel sea base destroyed, some rebels killed

August 19, 2006 02:37 EDT . BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI - Associated Press Writer - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Sri Lankan air force planes destroyed a strategic Tamil Tiger sea base in the north in overnight strikes, killing a number of insurgents, the military said Saturday.

Military spokesman Maj. Upali Rajapakse said separatist Tamil Tigers have been using the base to launch attacks on government positions in Jaffna Peninsula, which the Tigers claim as the cultural homeland of the country's 3.2 million ethnic Tamils.

About 800 rebels and security forces have been killed in fighting in Jaffna since Aug. 11, when rebels made a major push to retake the government-held but Tamil-majority peninsula.

The strikes came as the country's president, in a phone call Friday to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, said the doors were still open for peace talks with the rebels, according to the government.

Rajapakse said the air force hit a ``key sea Tiger base,'' referring to the rebels' fierce naval wing that has carried out several suicide attacks against the navy.

He did not reveal how many insurgents were killed in the overnight attack.

Air Force Group Cap. Ajantha Silva said Friday that the strikes were called as the rebels were reinforcing their front defense line in the north, the de facto border that separates rebel and government-held territory.

A pro-rebel Web site, Tamilnet, said the air force dropped four bombs on a site used to build boats as part of a civilian tsunami reconstruction project, and that two workers were wounded in the attack.

Rajapakse denied this. ``The Tigers were using this base to train their cadres and build boats under the pretext of building fishing boats. We have been monitoring this base ... and it was clear that attacks against the navy were launched from this base over the last few months.''

It was not immediately possible to verify either side's claim as conflict areas in the north have been virtually cut off to outsiders.

The two sides routinely dispute claims and death tolls offered by the other.

Last Monday, the rebels said the air force struck a children's home deep inside their territory, killing dozens. The military countered that the strike targeted a rebel base and that the dead were in fact child soldiers.

Violence between government forces and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels has spiked in the past few weeks in the north and east, where the insurgents have been fighting for over two decades for a separate homeland.

Most of the fighting has been focused around the eastern port of Trincomalee and in northern Jaffna Peninsula, where the 500,000 residents remain under a 22-hour curfew and food, water and other staples are running low.

The United Nations' refugee agency estimates that about 170,000 people have fled their homes since April, when a rebel attack on soldiers in Trincomalee sparked ethnic clashes and fighting flared anew.

On Friday, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees called on the government to reopen access roads to the north and east to allow vital aid to reach people there.

In his phone call with Kofi Annan, President Mahinda Rajapakse also assured the U.N. secretary-general that the government would ``provide all assistance to U.N. agencies to conduct their humanitarian relief work.''

On Saturday, the government said it is sending 3,800 tons of aid to Jaffna, including food and medicines.

The Tamil Tigers have been fighting since 1983 for a separate homeland for the tropical island's ethnic Tamils, who suffered decades of discrimination by the country's majority Sinhalese.

A Norwegian-brokered cease-fire in 2002 was supposed to end the violence, in which as many as 65,000 people were killed, but with the recent escalation of fighting, the country appears to be spiraling back into all-out war.

Associated Press writer Cassie Biggs contributed to this report.

On the Net:

Pro-rebel Web site: www.tamilnet.com

Big NGOs gone missing during Sri Lanka's crisis

A week has passed and not a single officer attached to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has gone to Muttur to verify the actual fate of the estimated 100 to 200 Muslims who were reportedly slayed by the LTTE for their alleged links to an Islamic organization named Jihad, a newspaper report in the Sunday Standard (www.standardnewspaperslk.com) newspaper said.

Senior Muslim Minister A.H.M. Fowzie who had just returned to Colombo from Kantale told the Sunday Standard that he was absolutely mystified as to why none of these 'big-time INGOs' had not visited the crisis zones.

"I don't understand why they haven't gone. Even Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe in the presence of President Mahinda Rajapakse phoned the ICRC head in Sri Lanka and assured security protection to all ICRC staff who go to Muttur courtesy the Army, but they still haven't' gone," the minister said.

He further noted that although no official number was available it was estimated that at least 100 Muslims were massacred by the LTTE, and the bodies may still be strewn across the onetime battle areas.

Meanwhile, the government's main Muslim ally's deputy leader Abul Kalam has slammed non Muslim political parties, international non-governmental organizations, and other 'big time' groups for differentiating between the hardships faced by the Muslim civilians and failing to issue even a statement expressing concern on the plight of their community.

Mr. Kalam, representing the National Unity Alliance (NUA) noted that it was shocking to note that the majority of these parties and INGOs had come out and expressed their condemnation and shock over the slaying of the 17 aid workers attached to the non-governmental organization Action Against Hunger, while not a single of these organizations had made any statements with regard to the situation faced by the Muslims in the East, where an estimated 100 reportedly been killed and some 35,000 are displaced.

"Not a single Tamil party or any other democratic party has openly condemned the situation which has befallen the Muslims. Why is everyone communalizing this, Why isn't anyone looking at this problem from a 'national issue' perspective ?" the NUA deputy leader queried.

He also noted that reaching out to the Islamic international community in hope of solace for the Sri Lankan Muslims would be an utter myth, when taking into consideration that this same Islamic international community has failed to open its eyes and react in the most ethical manner with regard to the Lebanon crisis.

"The Muslims who have been victims due to the battle between security forces and LTTE are frustrated even in the manner the international community, including the co-chairs and the European Union and even the United Nations has reacted to their plight. Everyone seems to be only interested in the 17 dead aid workers. There is absolutely no mention about the plight of the Muslims, which includes the killing of more than 30 and an estimated 100 still missing," Mr. Kalaam stressed.

Meanwhile, social service workers currently based in Kantale demanded to know where all these 'so called big organizations and their representatives' are. "Not a single authoritative officer representing INGOs in the capacity of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a plethora of bodies coming under the United Nations have visited these camps. It is only smalltime NGOs such as Muslim Aid, United Methodist Committee on Relief, Jamiatul Ulama, Muslim Foundation for Culture and Development and Jama'at-e Islami who are active in these crisis areas," sources said.

The sources also pointed out that it was 'absolutely appalling' to witness these so-called INGOs who claim to be working for the people peacefully traveling in their plush four-wheel drives and holidaying in expensive resorts, while civilians who are in need of their assistance are languishing.

Reports reaching the Sunday Standard disclosed that the sufferings of these IDPs are much worse than the victims of even the 2004 December 26 tsunami. Sources claimed that the situation was so bad that although many days have passed since they came to Kantale, most of them are still 'utterly confused'.

Citing reasons for their claim, sources pointed out that most of the camps housing these civilians were overflowing and was so bad that in many instances people were sleeping on top of each other.

"A small school in Parathweli in Kantale which taught some 1000 students is now overflowing with Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) numbering a whopping 10,000 to 12,000 civilians. Kantale simply cannot cope with this sudden requirement, while lodging spaces and even basic facilities needed for these displaced persons are grossly inadequate," sources said.

They also stressed that in comparison with the tsunami victims, they always had the possibility of going back to their homes after the catastrophe ended, and most of them were relocated in close proximity to their original homes unlike in the case of these nearly 50,000 displaced, who have been temporarily sheltered some 50 kilometres away from their homes.

"The most important factor was that the tsunami victims had absolutely no security threat unlike what has befallen these Muttur IDPs," sources added.

Sri Lanka's displaced Muslims demand security guarantee to return

The nearly 50,000 displaced civilians from Muttur, Thoppur and surrounding villages have laid down tough conditions if they are to return to their original homes. The majority of the displaced consisting of about 35,000 Muslims have categorically demanded that both the government and the LTTE must 'guarantee their absolute safety and security', sources from the East said.

"Hands off us, do whatever you'll want to each other but keep us out of your fighting," is what they are echoing to both parties. The recent incidents in Muttur and Trincomalee in general have also infused the minds of many of these civilians who may likely even demand arms if authorities fail to provide them with adequate security in the future.

The civilians will not be 'comfortable' with a unilateral guarantee, because after all the STF, Army and police were present when Muttur came under siege by the LTTE, sources noted.

However sources pointed out that although the demand for adequate security had been echoed often in the past, it would very likely fall on deaf ears once again, thereby paving the way for these civilians to have no option but to return to their homes with or without security, which may also make them rebellious.

Meanwhile, the Government's main Muslim ally, National Unity Alliance (NUA) has alleged that the general notion among the displaced Muslims was that the 'Mavil Aru' operation was just an excuse by both parties whose actual target appeared to be the 'Muslim civilians'.

NUA deputy leader Abul Kalam said that the intentions of both parties is questionable, on grounds that even the security forces had initiated action from densely populated Muslim areas in Muttur instead of the heavily populated Tamil areas in Muttur.

The Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Kantale alone is estimated at around 40,000 while the balance are scattered around nearby areas including Kinniya and Mollipatana.

8 Tamil Tiger rebels killed in Sri Lanka , official says

Associated Press, Wed August 16, 2006 06:15 EDT . BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI - Associated Press Writer - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Government forces killed eight separatist Tamil Tiger rebels during a gunbattle in northern Sri Lanka - , officials said Wednesday, as air strikes and exchanges of artillery continued to threaten the country's fragile cease-fire. Separately on Wednesday, an elite police unit killed three rebels who had attacked a police patrol in eastern Sri Lanka - , military spokesman Maj. Upali Rajapakse said.

There was no immediate comment from the rebels, but each side routinely disputes figures offered by the other, and reliable casualty counts are nearly impossible to come by.The air strikes were concentrated in northern territories controlled by the Tigers, whose forces battled soldiers with artillery on the Jaffna Peninsula, the Tamil heartland on the country's northern tip.

``On and off, (the rebels) are firing artillery into government-controlled areas and we have successfully repulsed those attacks,'' Rajapakse said.

He said fighter jets bombed insurgent positions in an effort to aid the ground troops on the peninsula, which is controlled by the government but surrounded by rebel territory.

He refused to say if there were any casualties. Officials have said that following weekend clashes in Jaffna, soldiers recovered the bodies of 79 rebels out of more than 200 believed killed. The fighting also killed 90 soldiers and sailors.

Schools around Sri Lanka - , meanwhile, remained empty after the government ordered them shut, fearing they could be targeted by the Tigers.

Aid workers estimate that around 100,000 people have been displaced by fighting in northern and eastern Sri Lanka - since July.

In Jaffna, daily 22-hour curfews have kept the city's 500,000 residents locked in their homes. With the city largely cut off, prices were rising fast, there was only about an hour of electricity a day and mobile phones were barely working.

Norway brokered a 2002 cease-fire between the government and the rebels, who have been fighting since 1983 for an independent homeland for the country's 3.2 million minority Tamils, most of whom are Hindu. The government is dominated by Sri Lanka - 's 14 million predominantly Buddhist Sinhalese.

Although the truce remains officially in effect, violence has been rising for more than a year, and the open fighting in recent weeks in the north and east has pushed the country toward a resumption of full-scale war

PRESIDENT URGED TO RE-OPEN ACCESS ROADS

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) chairman Basheer Segu Dawood MP has appealed to President Mahinda Rajapakse to authorize the immediate reopening of all access roads in uncontrolled areas of Batticaloa facilitating resumption of transport services to main highways in the government controlled areas in the light of the untold sufferings now being encountered by nearly 90,000 Tamil and Muslim people for want of their essential food and medical requirements. In a faxed appeal to the President, the party chairman has stated that Vavunadivu, Chengalady Karuththapalam roads in uncontrolled areas that lead to the Badulla highway and other roads including the Vaganeri road through Sithandy, Sandanamadu and Kawattamunai and also the Paddiruppu bride which were used every by thousands of people to procure their day to day requirements are remaining closed for several days.

HARTAL IN LTTE AREAS OVER AIR ATTACKS

A hartal was observed yesterday, August 15, in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu districts in LTTE controlled Vanni region as a mark of mourning and protest over Sri Lankan air force air attacks on Monday on a purported children's home in Kilinochchi in which 61 teenage girls were killed and 129 were wounded. As a result transport services completely ground to a halt, all business establishments including shops and all offices and government establishments remained closed, according to reports. A massive protest rally and march was held in Kilinochchi, the reports said. The UNICEF resident representative who addressed the rally was reported as a saying that he visited the scene of the incident where innocent students had become tragic victims of air attacks and he fully understood the grief and sentiments of the people. The incident had drawn criticism from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan as well.

While government spokesman, Minister Keheliya Rambukwela, has stated that those killed and wounded were LTTE recruits who were receiving guerilla training at an LTTE military camp which was targeted and attacked by the air force with pinpoint precision, the LTTE's Tamil Eelam Education Board director, V.Ilankumaran, is quoted by the pro-TamilNet website as saying that those killed and wounded were GCE(OL) students from different colleges in their areas who had come participate in a 10 day residential workshop on "leadership, self-awareness and first-aid".

Although it was stated by government high-ups within hours of the incident that a committee would be appointed to probe ‘to ascertain the facts and solve the mystery behind the deaths', Minister Rambukwela has now stated that the government has concrete evidence to prove that the target attacked was an LTTE training camp and the government has no regrets over the attack. The Minister had also reacted strongly on SLMM monitors' remarks that ‘they could not find any evidence of military installations of weapons at the scene of the incident'.

Sri Lanka's ceasefire monitors condemns the 'vicious, cold blooded murder' of Loganathan

The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in an unusually personally worded statement has condemned the cold blooded murder of the government's peace secretariat deputy chief Katesh Loganathan, who was shot dead by unidentified gunmen yesterday night at his home in Dehiwela.

"There are no words strong enough to condemn this viscous and cold blooded murder of yet another statesman living for peace," the SLMM said in the statement issued today afternoon.

"After having worked with Katesh Loganathan, and last time met him on Friday 11 August 2006, the message of his death came as a shock, not only for SLMM, but also for all people longing for peace. Taking part in his experiences, his well founded arguments and his professionalism has been a pleasure for all people who got to work with him," the statement added.

Tamil rebels say peace talks impossible as fighting rages in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka - 's government said Sunday it was ready to hold peace talks, a move promptly dismissed as impossible by the Tamil Tiger rebels as soldiers and insurgents traded artillery and mortar fire in the country's north. The latest round of fighting began in late July over a rebel-controlled water supply near the eastern port of Trincomalee, and has in recent days spread to other parts of the east and to the northern Jaffna Peninsula, the heartland of Sri Lanka - 's Tamil minority in whose name the insurgents claim to fight.

Tigers and government forces exchanged artillery fire Sunday near two key entry points to the peninsula, the villages of Muhamalai and Nargarkovil. Most of the peninsula has been controlled by the government for over a decade, and both villages lie along the line dividing government and rebel territory.

Thousands were reportedly trapped by the weekend's battles on the peninsula, which is closed to outsiders because of the fighting.

Both sides blame each other for the clashes, and Puleedevan insisted Sunday that the government must stop attacks and allow some 50,000 displaced people to return home.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from Sunday's fighting, but the government said Saturday that its forces had killed more than 200 rebels and lost 27 of their own in the day's fighting. There was no word from the rebels about casualties.

Government and rebel estimates of the death toll in the fighting since July vary wildly, but scores have been killed, including 17 Sri Lankans working for the Paris-based aid group Action Against Hunger. All but one of the aid workers was Tamil.

The 2002 cease-fire was intended to halt more than two decades of bloodshed between the government, dominated by Sri Lanka - 's 14 million Sinhalese, and the rebels, who have been fighting since 1983 for an independent homeland for Tamils in the north and east.

While the cease-fire remains officially in effect, it had been left in tatters by months of shootings and bombings before the latest round of clashes.

The peninsula was the scene of intense fighting during Sri Lanka - 's two decade-long civil war, with control changing sides a couple times before ending up in government hands in 1995.

Meanwhile, two suspected Tiger suicide bombers were detained Sunday in Colombo. One successfully killed himself by swallowing cyanide, and the other was rushed to a hospital after trying to do the same.

All of the rebels are supposed to carry cyanide capsules around their neck so the can kill themselves if caught.

On the Net:

Peace Secretariat Web site: www.peaceinsrilanka.org

Pro-rebel Web site: www.tamilnet.com

Forces retaliate major attack on Jaffna FDLs

Security Forces in Jaffna yesterday retaliated a major LTTE artillery and mortar fire on Muhamalai and Nagarkovil Forward Defence Lines (FDL) from 5.45 p.m. yesterday, Senior Coordinator to the Media Centre for National Security, Major Upali Rajapakse told the Daily News.

Fierce fighting erupted at 5.45 p.m. as security forces began retaliating the LTTE fire with the Tigers continuing with their artillery fire that commenced at 5.10 p.m.

"Security forces retaliated the LTTE artillery and mortar fire at 5.45 p.m. since there was no sign of the LTTE ceasing their artillery attacks," Major Rajapakse said.

Fighting was continuing at the time of this edition going to press. According to civilians in Jaffna, the LTTE has warned the people from Puloli, Eluthumadduval, Kilali, Manthuvil, Varani, Kachchai, Kodikamam and Meesali areas to flee from their villages close to the FDLs in Jaffna.

"This is another attempt by the terrorists to displace the civilians inside the peninsula and to create a situation similar to what they created in Muttur," the Media Centre for National Security said in a statement last night.

Meanwhile, Air Force fighter jets yesterday bombed two identified LTTE targets in the Batticaloa district in support of the ground troops engaged in the operation 'Watershed' to take full control of the Mavilaru area, Major Rajapakse told the Daily News.

Major Rajapakse said the Air Force had taken two LTTE targets which can be considered a threat to the ongoing operation to take full control of the Mavilaru area to ensure an uninterrupted water supply to the people living there.

"The Air Force had taken the targets that cannot be taken by long range artillery of the Security Forces," he added.

A Reuter report filed from Colombo quoting LTTE Peace Secretariat Chief S. Puleedevan in Killinochchi said many of the LTTE cadres had been killed due to the ongoing operation by the Security Forces.

According to Major Rajapakse no casualties were reported from the Security Forces side yesterday, since there were no heavy calibre artillery attacks on the ground troops.

"There were only mortar fire yesterday but no heavy calibre artillery attacks," Major Rajapakse said.

The Army put the death toll of the Security Forces to nine due to artillery and mortar fires of the LTTE on Thursday as five soldiers succumbed to their injuries after being admitted to hospitals.

Air Force Spokesman Group Captain Ajantha Silva told the Daily News that the Air Force took two LTTE targets in Batticaloa yesterday morning and afternoon which were considered as a threat to the ground troops engaged in the Mavilaru operation.

"We are taking all LTTE targets which are going to be a problem for the ongoing operation," he said.

According to military sources from the battle front, ground troops were reportedly further consolidating the Mavilaru area and continuing their operation to take control of the second gate under their control located another one kilo metre ahead.

Security Forces took control over one sluice gate and carried out an air attack to open the other gate located ahead for the ground troops to restore the water supply to more than 15,000 families in Seruwila, Ichalanpattu and Muttur areas on Tuesday night.

SITUATION REPORT - SRI LANKA ON 12.08.2006

Deputy Head of the Government's Peace Secretariat shot in Colombo

Colombo, August 12, 2006, 10.23 p.m.. Suspected Tamil tiger rebels today evening shot the deputy secretary general of the Sri Lankan government's peace secretariat Kethesh Loganatha at Dehiwela. Attempts made by the Lanka Academic to verify Mr. Loganathan's condition was futile, but initial reports claimed that he had died, this is however is yet to be confirmed.

A police officer attached to the Dehiwela police station told the Lanka Academic that he was unable to give exact details about the incident because the team gone to investigate the incident had yet not returned to the station.

Rebels say break Sri Lanka armys northern defences

Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels said on Saturday they had broken through army defences in the island's far north and were advancing on the government-held Jaffna peninsula, in the fiercest fighting since a 2002 truce.

The Tigers said they had pushed through a no-man's-land that separates rebel and government territory, destroyed army checkpoints on the other side and were advancing along the main A9 arterial road that connects the peninsula to their stronghold.

Aid workers reported pockets of fighting inside government territory near army forward defence lines, and truce monitors had received reports of fighting on beaches near Jaffna. Residents said hundreds were fleeing fishing villages near Jaffna.

The military said it still controlled the whole peninsula and had killed around 100 rebels, but said a few might have got through.

"We have completely destroyed the army checkpoints at the Muhamalai (border) crossing, and we are advancing on Jaffna," a Tiger official at the rebel Voice of Tigers radio station told Reuters, asking not to be named.

Tamil rebels push to recapture Sri Lanka 's Jaffna Peninsula

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Tamil Tiger rebels mounted a fierce offensive Saturday to retake Sri Lanka - 's northern Jaffna Peninsula, the heart of the island's Tamil minority, the military and rebels said, amid the heaviest fighting since the two sides signed a 2002 cease-fire. Meanwhile, a senior peace co-ordinating official of Sri Lanka - 's government was shot dead Saturday in a suburb of the capital, Colombo, police and a doctor said.

Ketheesh Loganathan, deputy head of the government's Peace Secretariat, which has coordinated a Norway-brokered peace process between the government and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels since 2002, was shot at his home, police officer N.K. Illangakoon said.

Dr. W.G Gunawardene confirmed that Loganathan had died. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the killing or the motive.

Loganathan was formally a political adviser to the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front, a former militant separatist group that fought to create a separate homeland for the country's ethnic minority Tamils.

EPRLF gave up arms in 1987 and has since opposed policies of the Tigers.

Saturday's fighting began early in the morning, when the rebels launched attacks against navy camps in the town of Trincomalee, and later pushed against government forces in Muhamalai and elsewhere, Jayawardana said.

A pro-rebel Web site, TamilNet, said the insurgents had overrun an army checkpoint at the village along the dividing line, but a statement from the defense ministry said soldiers had beaten them back, and that government forces were in ``firm and full control over the peninsula.''

The Jaffna Peninsula is considered the traditional home of Sri Lanka - 's 3.2 million ethnic Tamils. Most of the peninsula, including Jaffna city, is controlled by the government, but the rebels control a number of scattered areas.

It was the scene of intense fighting during Sri Lanka - 's two decade-long civil war, with control changing sides a couple times before ending up in government hands after a military offensive in 1995.

The main navy base in Trincomalee is a key supply point for the 40,000 Sri Lankan troops stationed on the peninsula.

The region around the fighting has been sealed off to outsiders, and there was no way to independently confirm the situation.

An ethnic Tamil lawmaker, meanwhile, said civilians in parts of the peninsula were trapped by heavy fighting, and are without electricity and telephones.

``People are not allowed to move to save their lives. The Sri Lankan government, by imposing a curfew, has kept them as human shields,'' said Nadaraja Raviraj, a lawmaker from Jaffna.

There was no immediate comment from the government.

The 2002 cease-fire was intended to halt more than two decades of bloodshed between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which has been fighting since 1983 for an independent homeland for ethnic Tamils in the north and east of the country.

While the cease-fire remains officially in effect, it has been left in shreds by weeks of fighting.

The latest conflict started when the rebels blocked the flow of water from a reservoir to government-held villages in the northeast on July 20, accusing officials of backtracking on a pledge to boost water to rebel-held areas. After days of fighting the sluice was reopened, with both sides claiming credit for ending the water crisis.

Sri Lankan rebels suffer massive loss: More than 100 Tigers killed overnight

Colombo, August 12, 2006, 7.10 p.m.. The LTTE has suffered a massive loss due to yesterday's fighting that erupted in Jaffna, with the organization reportedly losing more than 100 tiger rebels.

The media centre for national security said that, "tiger terrorists in their attempts to disrupt the Security Forces defences in Jaffna peninsula experienced humiliation when they suffered heavy casualties on the face of the Security Forces' retaliations."

Terrorists tried to attack the Forward Defence Lines (FDL) at Muhammalai and the defences at Kayts last evening and during the early hours of today by using heavy artillery and mortars with the intention of capturing the government controlled territory.

However during the battles at Muhammalai tigers suffered 30-35 cadres killed of whom some bodies are still lying in front of the FDLs. The government Air Strikes and the Multi Barrel Artillery attacks is estimated to have killed over 54 cadres who were kept as reserves at Poonarin. While another 20-25 sea tigers were killed at Kayts.

"Security Forces are at present consolidating their defences and conducting cordon and search operations to find and destroy any terrorists in the vicinity," the centre added. During the defensive operations the Security Forces had 36 soldiers injured of whom 7 were in critical conditions.

MUSLIM PARTIES’ PROTEST DEMO Today

A massive protest demonstration, sponsored by the Muslim United Liberation Front (MULF) and participated by all major Muslim political parties and organizations, is to be held tomorrow August 11 in front of the Dematagaha Jumma Masjid near the Colombo Town Hall to condemn to condemn LTTE war crime that has left over 40,000 Muslims of Muttur and over 15,000 of Thoppur as displaced refugees while also massacring over 100 of them. At this protest demonstration to be held at 1:00 p.m. after Jumma Prayers the government's failure to protect the innocent civilians will also be condemned at this demonstration, according to a media release issued by the MULF. Sri Lanka Muslim Congress national leader Rauff Hakeem MP and representatives of the MULF, United Socialist Party, All University Muslim Students' Federation, All Ceylon Muslim League Youth Front, Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum, Sri Lanka Sharia Board, Board of Tharikkas, YMMA national Council, Friends of Free Palestine, Palestine Solidarity Movement, Kashmir Solidarity Movement and Young Lawyers' Association will join the protest demonstration.

50,000 LANGUISHING IN KANTALAI- HAKEEM TELLS PARLIAMENT

Sri Lanka Muslim Congrss (SLMC) national leader Rauff Hakeem MP,speaking in parliament on Tuesday, August 8, on the current calamity of the displaced Muslim of the war ravaged Muttur town in Trincomalee said that over 50,000 people from areas in and around Mutur have fled to Kantalai and are now languishing in a deplorable condition. He said that more refugees were pouring in from there into many areas in Kurunegala, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruxva districts. Colombo and Kandy districts too have begun to receive small numbers of these unfortunate victims of war. Thousands of unfortunate victims of the Mutur eviction are recounting their harrowing experiences at the hands of the LTTE and the deliberate unceasing artillery and mortar attacks from security forces' camps, with the objective of flushing out the LTTE, despite calls to suspend this mode of attack and, unfortunately, this had resulted in scores of people dying, he said. He said that all of us are aware that in war the first casualty is truth.

Vivid details of the atrocious and inhuman treatment meted out to the fleeing civilian population by LTTE cadres, in the vicinity of Pachchanoor on the Mutur - Kantalai road. starkly exposed the LTTE's brutality, he said. The thousands of civilians who left Mutur on an assurance by the LTTE that no harm would be caused to them if they chose to leave were subjected to such harassment and cruelty resulting in the Muslims realizing that as in instances before, the LTTE's assurances could not be taken for granted, he further said.

He stated that ever since the invasion of Mutur by the LTTE, his appeals and statements have unfortunately been the subject of critical retort by some elements in the government, adding that in some print media and websites supportive of the LTTE, including the Tamil net, his statements were taken out of context and portions of the statements have been used to give the impression that he had attributed disproportionate blame on the government forces. There, armed cadres of the LTTE separated the young and able bodied men from the women, the children and the elderly and some of the cadres were seen beating the women, the children and the elderly who chose to plead on behalf of the detained men, he said. An artillery attack which targeted this checkpoint, according to scores of eyewitnesses resulted in the death of some civilians as well as a few LTTE cadres. In the ensuing confusion many civilians managed to escape from the LTTE cadres and reach Kantalai after trekking for many hours through inhospitable terrain, he also said.

Speaking further, he said that:

" The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress as a Party that has received preponderant mandate repeatedly from the Muslims is duty bound to bring to the attention of this august assembly and place on record the grave injustice caused to the innocent civilian population of Muttur and the surrounding villages as a result of the recent military engagement between the LITE and the Government of Sri Lanka that was aimed at gaining control of territory.

" The GoSL whilst claiming that their offensive was to ensure the security of the State and the LTTE the areas under their control have continued with absolute impunity to desecrate the human security of the innocent civilian population caught up in the cross fire.

" All of us are aware that in war the first casualty is truth. Unfortunately this has resulted in scores of people dying and the constructive expulsion of Muslims caused by the LTTE's surprise attack.

" The LTTE claims that they had withdrawn their forces to pre CFA positions after having achieved the limited objective of attacking selected targets of the Sri Lankan forces From the morning of 4th August, thousands of fleeing civilians, including children, pregnant mothers and the elderly who have been subjected to virtual starvation for over forty eight hours, as a result of incessant attacks on Mutur both by the government forces and the LTTE, were forcibly diverted to Kiranthimunai, off the 64th milepost on the Mutur - Kantalai road.

" Quite paradoxically the government stated that they are resorting to a limited offensive operation on humanitarian grounds to help the farmers who were served by the Mawilaru anicut, the sluice gates of which were forcibly closed by the LTTE. Similarly the LTTE in its statement announcing the withdrawal of their forces to pre-CFA positions all over the Trincomalee district also stated that they are doing so, in consideration of the humanitarian crisis.

"On Sunday 6th, we heard of the offer by the LTTE to voluntarily open the sluice gates of Mawil Aru provided the government agrees to certain conditions.

"All the peace loving people of Sri Lanka have come to realize that both the government and the LTTE continue to make sanctimonious pronouncements supposedly with the objective of respecting the humanitarian needs of the people. In real terms their motive is to pursue a relentless military option totally disregarding the sanctity of life and limb of innocent civilians. The destruction caused to property and other economic assets of the innocent Muslim, Tamil and Sinhala people of this area is incalculable. The psychological trauma experienced by these people is going to leave an indelible impact on their psyche for years to come. The cost of the ammunition, the bombs and all the military hardware that are employed and estroyed by both sides to this conflict could have fed the affected farmers of Mawil Aru and all the other victims who have been forced to leave their homes indefinitely.

" In terms of the CFA it is the GoSL that is responsible for the protection of human security particularly in government controlled areas. The events that unfolded in the recent past reiterates the SLMC's repeated call that the CFA must be reviewed and strengthened to address the legitimate concerns of all stakeholders and every possible step taken to protect and ensure security of the civilian population at all times.

" It is also our considered view that these incidents cannot be seen in isolation but need to viewed together with the events of the recent past, including the notices that were distributed in Muttur area calling the Muslims to vacate the areas. It is also pertinent to analyse as to whether the GoSL has unwittingly been lured into a trap, where it could easily be accused of triggering the exodus of the people of Muttur or have the radical elements clamoring for war as the solution to the ethnic problem skillfully achieved their objective of pitting the Muslims against the Tamils.

" It is also our reiterated position mat as a responsible political party we are committed to finding a lasting, durable and dignified peace that would be acceptable to all communities through negotiations. It is in this backdrop that we would find it difficult to endorse indiscriminate violations of the CFA that has resulted in forced eviction of Muslims from the areas of their traditional habitation and systematic destruction of the political and economic power of the Muslims of the Northern and Eastern Provinces. "

Situation Report - Sri Lanka

Troops feared dead as S.Lanka ammo dump explodes

TRINCOMALEE, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Many troops battling Tamil Tiger rebels in east Sri Lanka were feared dead or wounded on Thursday after an ammunition dump at an army camp apparently accidentally exploded, military sources said.

"We fired artillery all day. Maybe one of the guns overheated and accidentally blew up," said one source. "The dump exploded. We expect lots of casualties and deaths."

Reuters correspondents in the eastern town of Trincomalee heard sustained explosions coming from the camp about 30 km (20 miles) away, which lit up the night sky on the horizon.

The army said the explosion appeared to be accidental, but had no details on the damage caused. Hospital officials at the nearby government-held town of Kantale sent four ambulances to the area as a precaution.

Heavy clashes erupt at Mavil Aru

Heavy fighting was reported between Sri Lanka's security forces and Tamil Tiger rebels early morning today (10), after Tiger cadres attempted to fire showers of mortars at troops facilitating the supply of water through the Mavil Aru Anicut, which was reopened only yesterday.

Troops retaliated with mortars. Security Forces suffered few injuries and the wounded were evacuated to Kantale hospital immediately. 'Operation Water shed' continues, the Media Centre for National Security said. No immediate details were available of the LTTE casualties

Minority Rights Group International demands Government and LTTE to make a greater commitment to safeguard minority rights

Sri Lanka's minorities, including its near two million Muslims, have been the worst affected in the recent surge in violence and both the Government of Sri Lanka and Tamil Tiger rebels must make a greater commitment to safeguard minority rights and provide equal access to humanitarian assistance, Minority Rights Group said today.

The London based human rights organisation calls on both the Government of Sri Lanka and Tamil Tiger rebels to urgently stop fighting, strictly observe the cease-fire and ensure the protection of minorities in their areas of control.

"The area where recent fighting has broken out is predominantly Muslim and Tamil and we are concerned at the risk to life, security and property that these minority communities face," says Clive Baldwin, Head of International Advocacy at MRG.

"In most conflicts there are always the forgotten minorities. The most vulnerable at present are probably the Muslims," Baldwin adds.

Muslims form 8 percent of the near 20 million population of Sri Lanka and are the majority community in the town of Muttur, which has been at the centre of recent fighting. Following the attacks Muslims have had to flee to predominantly Sinhalese villages and are being housed in schools and other temporary shelters, with limited facilities. The Sri Lankan Tamils who form the largest minority and are also part of the population of Muttur have reportedly fled to areas under Tamil Tiger control. Several thousand Muslims and Tamils remain trapped in areas where fighting continues.

"The specific needs of the Muslims and Tamils must be taken into consideration. Minority women in camps are likely to be in a particularly vulnerable situation." Baldwin says.

As international agencies warn of a humanitarian crisis, MRG is particularly concerned about the situation of displaced people and the impediments to aid agencies operating in the area.

"In situations of conflict minority communities are often the last to be given access to aid and we hope this will not be the case in Sri Lanka," Baldwin adds.

MRG calls on both the government and Tamil rebels to give international and local aid agencies unimpeded access to the affected areas. The aim should be to facilitate the free return, in safety, of minority communities to their homes as quickly as possible.

MRG also urges the government and LTTE to return to the negotiating process in order to find a permanent solution to the country's conflict. The group says it is critical that when peace talks resume all communities are represented in the process.

Heavy fighting breaks out in Sri Lanka , more than 50 civilians dead, rebels say

The Sri Lankan military attacked Tamil Tiger rebels from land and air Thursday and the rebels retaliated in heavy fighting that killed at least 13 combatants, officials said. A Nordic cease-fire monitor warned the situation was worsening.

A senior rebel official, Seevarathnam Puleedevan, said at least 50 civilians had been killed and 200 injured in the government military operation, but a military spokesman said he was unaware of any civilian casualties.

Puleedevan appealed to the International Committee of the Red Cross to help evacuate civilian casualties, saying there weren't enough facilities locally available there to treat them. But ICRC official Davide Vignati said the organization had yet to receive an official request from either side.

At least six government soldiers were killed and 49 wounded and admitted to hospital, a doctor said. A Tiger spokesman, Rasiah Ilanthirayan, said seven rebels had died and 15 others were wounded.

``It is a warlike situation, our forces are retaliating with artillery fire and direct gun fire,'' Ilanthirayan said.

``The situation is worsening,'' said Robert Nilsson, a member of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission. ``Hopefully there will be a change of heart, this has already gone too far.''

The fighting centered around a key reservoir and canal in Trincomalee district, which in recent weeks has seen some of the worst fighting since the country's 2002 cease-fire, with estimates of the number of combatants and civilians killed ranging from about 100 to 300.

Dr. B.G.M. Costa, a hospital doctor in Kantale, a town in the area, said the bodies of five soldiers had been brought in and 35 others were wounded. Two with critical injuries were flown to Colombo.

Military spokesman Maj. Upali Rajapakse said he was not aware of any civilian casualties, but said the rebels were ``known for using civilians as human shields and they place their gun positions around civilian villages.''

``The Sri Lankan army does not target civilians,'' he said.

The rebels closed sluice gates at the reservoir on July 20, cutting water to over 60,000 people living in government-controlled villages, after accusing the government of reneging on a pledge to boost water in rebel-held areas.

The rebels announced on Tuesday that they were reopening the gates, saying that heavy attacks on rebel areas by army troops were hurting civilians, and the military said Wednesday that it had reclaimed control of the waterway.

But the government resumed shelling the area around the reservoir the same day, saying it needed to clear the area of rebels so they would not be able to block the water supply again.

``From dawn today, the Sri Lankan army has launched a full-fledged offensive operation against our territories involving thousands of troops, heavy guns and bombardment,'' rebel spokesman Ilanthirayan said.

The Tamil Tigers began fighting in 1983 for a separate homeland for the country's 3.2 million Tamils, accusing the 14 million Sinhalese majority of discrimination.

The 2002 cease-fire put a temporary halt to the bloodshed, but the truce has nearly collapsed in recent months. Renewed fighting has killed more than 900 people _ half of them civilians _ since December, the cease-fire monitors say.

____ Associated Press writer Dilip Ganguly in Colombo contributed to this report.