VIP helicopter comes under attack; EPDP-TMVP on collision course; Karuna: LTTE 'very weak’; Wanni facing starvation after Omanthai closure
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Whatsapp
  • Linkedin
  • Print

    • A Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF) helicopter that left for re-fuelling after dropping President Mahinda Rajapaksa and other top delegates at Arugam Bay in Ampara on July 1 came under attack. Mr. Rajapakse had gone there to participate in the opening of the newly-built Arugam Bay bridge. Defence sources claimed that at least three shots had hit one of the helicopters, fired from the Arugam Bay jungles1. However, Air Force spokesman Janaka Nanayakkara stated that an SLAF helicopter, returning after refueling in Ampara, had to make an emergency landing due to a technical fault.

    Reports noted that 2 allies of the government, the EPDP and the TMVP were in a collision course trading charges against each other. The EPDP, led by Minister Douglas Devananda, was demanding that the government investigate allegations of assault against EPDP members by TMVP cadres in the east2. The TMVP, which is also an ally of the government, however rejected the allegations and claimed that the EPDP was indulging in political drama to instill fear among the easterners against the ruling alliance led by Eastern Province Chief Minister Pillayan. The TMVP warned that it too would resort to ‘action’ if the EPDP did not stop its mud slinging campaign. TMVP spokesperson Azath Maulana, charged that the EPDP had become “frustrated” as it had failed to secure any seats at the recently-held Eastern Provincial Council Elections3.

    Karuna Amman meanwhile, who was deported from UK, in an interview to BBC Sandeshaya stated that the LTTE had become “very weak” due to the continuous military offensive launched by Colombo and that they could not any offensive4.

    In other developments, government officials in the Wanni warned that the closure of the Omanthai entry/exit point was affecting the supply of essential supplies to over 200,000 civilians, thus pushing the humanitarian situation in the area to breaking point. Nagalingam Vedanayagam, the government agent in Kilinochchi revealed that supplies to civilians would only last for two weeks and that the prices would sky rocket even before that if the closure continued. The Director of the Kilinochchi Hospital also stated that drugs were only available for a month and that new supplies were held up at Omanthai5. The ICRC, which pulled out of Omanthai on July1 after a heavy exchange of artillery and aerial fire near the northern end of the cross-over point, maintained that it would only return after security guarantees were obtained from both parties.

    Top