India has mended its stand on Sri Lanka, no longer insisting that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, should lay down arms as a pre-condition for talks with the government in Colombo for a political settlement. Instead of asking the LTTE to lay down the arms, India now wants it to at least agree in principle to lay down the arms as that can pave the way for negotiations with the Sri Lankan government.
Accusing Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse of abdicating his responsibility to save civilians in the restive north, Tamil Americans have asked United States President Barack Obama to send his forces to the strife-torn nation to save the lives of innocent people. "This is pure and simple genocide. We are asking the Obama administration to intervene to save the Tamils of Sri Lanka by sending its army there," they said.
Sri Lankan government on Wednesday night decided to formally ban the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a move signalling end of prospects of peace talks with the Tamil Tigers against whom the security forces have launched a major offensive. The decision to ban the outfit with effect from midnight on Wednesday was taken at an emergency Cabinet meeting chaired by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
With the win, India also qualified for the FIBA Asia Championship in China in September.
Sixty-six Tamil Nadu fishermen set free by a Sri lankan court after being arrested recently by the island navy, arrived in Rameswaram on Wednesday with the Indian Coast Guard repatriating them.
The Sri Lankan Air Force this evening destroyed an artillery gun position of the Tigers at Pooneryn, just south of the Jaffna peninsula.
The pitched battles follow two days of air raids by government troops triggered by the killing of 64 bus passengers in a suspected rebel landmine attack on Thursday in Anuradhapura.
In continuing instances of arrests of Tamil Nadu fishermen by Sri Lankan Naval personnel, seven of them from a coastal village in Nagapattinam district were arrested while fishing near Kodiyakari, a fishermen's organisation official said on Friday.
The visit and the agenda is mainly to re-emphasise the traditional connect between India and Sri Lanka, particularly in the context of Buddhism, which is a shared heritage.
Diplomats expressed fears that the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam could resort to more guerrilla attacks in the coming weeks as the peace process ground to a halt.
"The team is currently in London and we are trying to secure seats with an alternative airline," said Samantha Algama, Sri Lanka Cricket's media spokesman.
Anura Bandarnaike, Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister is to visit New Delhi to visit Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
According to observers, with pro-China Rajapaksa winning the election, the result will have a bearing on India's presence in the Indian Ocean region where Beijing is increasingly making inroads.
Over 26 Tamil Tiger rebels and one soldier were killed in fresh clashes between government troops and the guerrillas in the restive northern Sri Lanka, the military said on Monday.
At least 64 people were killed in fierce ground clashes and shelling of a key military base close to a Catholic church by Ta mil Tigers in Sri Lanka's embattled northern region, officials have said.
'The Tamils in military occupied areas are being denied the Right to Livelihood and Right to Life. How can India allow the Sri Lankan government to forget that there are over 80,000 war widows? Many of them are maimed, living in inhuman conditions and unable to earn a living. What concerns Tamils in Sri Lanka concerns the Tamils in India,' says Dr Gabriele Dietrich, a grassroot activist and a naturalised Indian citizen.
In a conversation with R Ramasubramanian, Xavier said, "My documentary attempts to find answers to those frequently asked questions from Tamil refugees who are still in India."
Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy on Monday condemned Dravida Munettra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi for his 'outrageous' remarks against Indo-Sri Lanka relations at a pro-Eelam Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation meet.
Troops and the LTTE exchanged fire along a de facto border in the Wanni region on Tuesday evening, the ministry said.
Sri Lanka Cricket has protested to the Australian cricket team management over alleged highhandedness of spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan, who is working with the visitors as a spin consultant for the three-Test series in island nation.
The fishermen were apprehended along with their seven boats and handed over to the Ilawalai police in northern Jaffna peninsular on Wednesday by a group of local fishermen.
The mine, planted near an electricity transformer, was targeted at a bus taking constables home on leave, a police official said.
The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam set off the mine, planted near an electricity transformer, targetting a bus taking constables home on leave, a ministry spokesman said.
President Chandrika Kumaratunga made an appearance at the Independence Square Park where the Tamil leader was cremated.
Over 52 militants of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have been killed in gunbattles between security forces and the rebels in Sri Lanka's embattled north, where the Army captured a portion of the rebel-held Thampane area.
Sri Lanka is still wary of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's international network and has voiced concern about the possible re-emergence of pro-LTTE sympathisers despite the military defeat of the Tamil rebels, United States State Department's report has said.
The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested another 11 Tamil Nadu fishermen late on Wednesday night, hours after they apprehended 36 fishermen hailing from a village in Pudukottai district while fishing near Neduntheevu and Katchatheevu islet, a fisheries department official said.
Even as the polity find ways and means to address the genuine concerns and fears of the society, the Sri Lankan State apparatus would have to unravel these mystery-questions with convincing answers, and a road-map to the future, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam and the Dravida Munetra Kazhagam on Monday joined hands in Rajya Sabha to demand that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should not attend Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka in November.
Police and troops stepped up security on Sunday ahead of next week's traditional Sinhala and Tamil New Year.
'It will be a double tragedy for Sri Lanka if making peace proves more difficult than making war,' says Brahma Chellaney.
A central team wants to know if Sri Lankan Tamils want to return to their country.
Sri Lanka on Monday said the global community cannot raise issues of rights violations against it unless guided by "political reasons," as a top United States official arrived in Colombo coinciding with the United Nations rights council meeting to discuss alleged war crimes during the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam conflict.
As UNHRC is set to take up the US-sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka, a 41-year-old man in Tamil Nadu on Monday attempted self immolation and various pro-Tamil groups staged protests demanding action against Sri Lanka for alleged war crimes.
Military officials initially thought the blast had been caused by a grenade attack, but later tracked it down to the three-wheeler.
The US and India are in sync with their foreign policy toward Sri Lanka, particularly over the repatriation of the remaining 40,000 plus internally displaced persons after the government's victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in the Tamil-populated northern province, said Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Robert O Blake.
"The ceasefire should continue and both sides should come to the negotiating table to resolve the problem," the minister said.
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