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Sri Lankan Forces Launch Fresh Attack Against Tamil Rebels
Sri Lankan government forces launched a fresh offensive Tuesday against separatist Tamil Tiger rebels in the northern Jaffna peninsula to expand government-controlled territory there, a military spokesman said.
This is the first military operation mounted by government forces against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels since the beginning of the new year.
Military spokesman said that government forces backed by tanks, heavy artillery and aircraft began their military operation at dawn Tuesday, trying to move toward the strategic Elephant Pass leading to the northern Jaffna peninsula.
One civilian was killed and several others were injured in the first hour of the fighting, he said.
The Elephant Pass was lost to the LTTE rebels during fierce fighting between government forces and Tamil rebels in April last year. The loss of it was seen as the worst defeat of government forces in the 18-year bloody ethnic war.
The LTTE rebels announced a one-month ceasefire starting from Christmas eve last year and wanted the government to reciprocate their truce offer. The government stressed that a ceasefire would be considered only after peace talks between the two sides head toward a settlement for the long-running ethnic war.
The LTTE rebels have been fighting since 1983 against government forces in the north and east of the country in an attempt to set up an independent homeland for minority Tamils there. The rebels entered peace negotiations with the government several times in the past but violated agreements with the government and resumed fighting soon.
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