ICT by IANS - Chennai, Oct 29 (IANS)

A Canada-based Tamil group sympathetic to Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers has threatened to assassinate former Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayaram Jayalalitha, a party official said on Wednesday. Jaya Kumar, a former AIADMK minister, told the police that a man calling himself Tamil Maindan, a functionary of the World Tamil Eelam Protection Organisation, had sent a letter warning that Jayalalitha would be killed for opposing the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).“Jayalalitha would suffer the same fate as (former Pakistan prime minister) Benazir Bhutto for continuing to oppose Tamils in Sri Lanka,” said the complaint.

An LTTE light wing air craft dropped two improvised bombs at the Kelani-Tissa power station in the outskirts of Colombo, Tuesday (Oct 28) around midnight.

According to available information, the blasts have caused minor damages to the premises. Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) officials said that a cooler connected to the gas turbine power generator caught fire and was immediately extinguished by the Colombo fire brigade who arrived at the site instantly. 

Troops of Task Force 01 have successfully gained total control over another LTTE stronghold, Jayapuram, located northeast of Nachchikuda in Kilinochchi district, this morning, 29 October, following days of long fighting, the latest report received from the battlefront said.

LTTE terrorists have strengthened their defences in Jayapuram built-up area and given stiff resistance on advancing troops towards Nachchikuda.

In seeking to address the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka without in any way easing the situation on the ground for the beleaguered terrorist organisation, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee found a practical way out of the political crisis arising from the decision of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MPs to resign their membership of Parliament.

With the two countries reaching an agreement on ensuring the protection of Indian fishermen entering Sri Lankan waters, and Sri Lanka promising to guard against civilian casualties in the war against the LTTE, Mr. Karunanidhi quite rightly shifted the focus from the issue of forcing a ceasefire in the war between the Sri Lankan armed forces and the LTTE to extending humanitarian aid to the Tamil civilian population affected by the conflict.

by :N. RAM

“It’ll be based on devolution of power and democratic rights”  

COLOMBO: “Let me reiterate that my government is firmly committed to a negotiated political solution — based on devolution of power and ensuring the democratic, political, including linguistic, rights of all our Tamil brethren within an undivided Sri Lanka,” President Mahinda Rajapaksa told The Hindu in an interview at ‘Temple Trees’ in Colombo on Monday. “As President of Sri Lanka,” he explained, in this tranquil setting, the official residence of former Prime Ministers, “I am absolutely clear that there is, and can be, no military solution to political questions. I have always maintained this.

by N. Ram

A group of senior public figures from India visited Sri Lanka this week for the inaugural seminar of the Sri Lanka India Pragathi Sansadaya, initiated by Presidential Advisor Mr. Sunimal Fernando at the Foundation Institute on October 22nd. They addressed a media briefing held at the Peace Secretariat the following day.

The idea was to reflect on the future of the relationship between Sri Lanka and India. Two retired diplomats - former Foreign Secretary Ambassador K.P.S. Menon and former High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Ambassador N.N. Jha - and two intellectuals and senior members of the largest national political parties - Dr. Ravni Thakur, academic and Joint Secretary of the Foreign Affairs Cell of the All India Congress Central Committee and Dr. Seshadri Chari, economist and former Editor of the official journal of the Bharatiya Janata Party - participated. 

by Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha  

The Peace Secretariat was shocked by the attack last week by the LTTE on two merchant ships carrying food and other supplies to civilians in Jaffna.

It was not however entirely surprised, for the deprivation that was intended, and that will inevitably result, has been a significant tool of the LTTE in its relentless struggle against both the Tamil people and the Sri Lankan state.

By BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI, Associated Press Writer  

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Government forces and Tamil Tiger separatists fought pitched battles in the rain and mud in a ring of villages outside the rebel administrative capital in northern Sri Lanka, the military said Tuesday. "Heavy clashes" broke out throughout the day Monday in the village of Pallawarayankatu near rebel headquarters in Kilinochchi, the military said in a statement. Separate fighting erupted in the villages of Akkrayankulam and Kokkavil. 

The military did not provide casualty details in line with a new government policy, but said troops inflicted "heavy losses" on the rebels. Fighting also broke out Monday in nearby Mullaitivu district, the military said. The government has vowed to destroy the rebel group by the end of the year and has pushed deep into the rebels' de facto state in the north in recent months. Several weeks ago, the military said it was just outside Kilinochchi and was poised to seize the town from the rebels.

Colombo, Oct 28 (IANS)

The United Nations office said here Tuesday that it discovered two pistols with ammunitions hidden in the premises of one of its regional offices in Sri Lanka.'The Makarov pistols and 48 rounds of ammunition had been secreted under an outdoor wood pile in the Mannar IOM (International Organisation for Migration) office and were discovered at 10 a.m. Tuesday by a UN security officer during a regular security sweep,' said a UN officer here.