SRI LANKA: Journalists gather at a military press conference after army kills nearly 500 Tamil Tiger rebels and aid arrives for residents caught in fighting

A Sri Lankan military spokesman said the army killed nearly 500 Tamil Tiger rebels in fighting, while showing journalists gathered at a news conference in Colombo on Tuesday (August 22) pictures and video of the operation. The material shows soldiers burning the dead bodies of rebel fighters and captured weapons in Sri Lanka's north and east. It is the fourth week of fighting in the worst upsurge of violence since a 2002 ceasefire, which monitors say is now dead in all but name. Sri Lankan military spokesman Brigadier Parsad Samarasinghe said the military was consolidating their positions in the northern border separating the rebel held Wanni from the government controlled Jaffna peninsuela. "The troops are consolidating the area in and around Muhamale area. At the same time today also around 9.30 there were mortar firing towards Muhamale by LTTE LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) in Palai area. So, air targets were taken by the air force," he said. Thousands of residents trapped by the fighting in the besieged northern Jaffna peninsula are waiting for an aid ship to sail to the Tamil-dominated north. Some back the Tigers. Thousands of families have fled their homes, many taking refuge in churches or relatives' homes. Aid workers say more than 160,000 people have been displaced in the north and east because of fighting all sides estimate has killed hundreds. Shortages are also rising fast in the rebel-held heartland south of Jaffna, cut off for most of the last two weeks after the army closed checkpoints. Some aid worker compounds have been raided for food around the northern rebel base of Kilinochchi. The government dispatched a shipload of essential items to the area on Tuesday. The Indian registered vassel will fly the ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) flag and is expecteed to return with foreign passport holders stuck in Jaffna due the fighting. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa last night visited the Colombo port to inspect loading operations. Defence spokesman and cabinet minister Keheliya Rambukwale said the President personally ordered ministers to look into the welfare of the people in Jaffna "There have been thousands displaced in Jaffna. Now again it is a complete ethnic group. This is ware the President made a very clear point to say that the ethnicity is imaterial and that they all need assisstance ,the assisstance must be provided in the same magnitide and in the same enthusiasm that we did to Mavilnaru and to Mutur and now to Jaffna," the defence spokesman told a news conference in Colombo. The Tigers and the military accuse each other of being the aggressor, but both maintain they are honouring the ceasefire. Diplomats say both sides are flouting it, and see no push for an end to a two-decade war that has killed over 65,000 people. However President Rajapaksa told ambasaddors from Norway, the United States, Japan and the European Community that the government was commited to peace and was only defending it self from attacks by the rebels. The four countries are Sri Lanka's main donors and have taken an active rold in pushing the peace proceess forward. Defense spokesman reiterated that any cease fire should not allow the rebels to re arm and re group to attack the government later on The President reiterated, underscored onething the commitment to peace by the government syands as it is.But also he focsed attention of the co chairs that every time we have had this seacefire and then the government adher to it it has been the practise it has been the experience that the LTTE violates it blatently and it ends up as a disaster to the government" he said.

ITN Source | August 22, 2006

Tags:. .attention. .worst. .ship. .defending. .commitment