Resumption of hostilities Sri Lankan Civil War

1 resumption of hostilities

1.1 talks , further violence
1.2 mavil aru water dispute
1.3 ltte offensives in muttur , jaffna
1.4 fall of sampur
1.5 ltte retaliation , further peace talks
1.6 government offensive in east

resumption of hostilities

red area shows approximate areas of sri lanka controlled ltte , government, of december 2005.

beginning in december 2005, there increased guerrilla activity northeast, including claymore mine attacks killed 150 government troops, clashes between sea tigers , sri lanka navy , killings of sympathizers on both sides including taraki sivaram, pro-ltte journalist, , joseph pararajasingham, pro-ltte mp, both killed allegedly government of sri lanka.

at beginning of 2006 focus of civil war turned civilian targets, commuter bus , train bombings carried out in parts of country, including series of attacks against commuters in , around colombo.

talks , further violence

in light of violence, co-chairs of tokyo donor conference called on both parties return negotiating table. state department officials gave warnings tigers, stating return hostilities mean tigers face more capable , more determined sri lankan military. while talks going on there violence directed towards civilians, such killings of 5 tamil students on 2 january 2006.

in last-minute effort salvage agreement between parties, norwegian special envoy erik solheim , ltte theoretician anton balasingham arrived on island. parties disagreed on location of talks; however, continued efforts produced breakthrough when both parties agreed on 7 february 2006 new talks held in geneva, switzerland, on 22 , 23 february. during weeks after talks there significant decrease in violence. however, ltte resumed attacks against military in april.

in light of violence, ltte called postponement of geneva talks until 24–25 april, , government agreed this. following negotiations, both government , rebels agreed have civilian vessel transport regional ltte leaders international truce monitors on 16 april, involved crossing government-controlled territory. however, climate shifted drastically when tigers cancelled meeting, claiming not have agreed naval escort. according slmm, tamil rebels had agreed escort.

on 20 april 2006 ltte officially pulled out of peace talks indefinitely. while stated transportation issues had prevented them meeting regional leaders, analysts , international community skeptical, seeing transportation issue delaying tactic ltte avoid attending peace talks in geneva. violence continued spiral , on 23 april 2006, 6 sinhalese rice farmers massacred in paddy fields suspected ltte cadres, , on 13 may 2006 13 tamil civilians killed in islet of kayts. international condemnation against ltte skyrocketed following attempted assassination of commander of sri lanka army, lt. gen. sarath fonseka, female ltte black tiger suicide bomber named anoja kugenthirasah, concealed explosives appearing pregnant , blew herself @ army headquarters in colombo. first time since 2001 cease-fire, sri lanka air force carried out aerial assaults on rebel positions in northeastern part of island in retaliation attack.

this attack, along assassination of lakshman kadiragamar year earlier , unsuccessful attack against naval vessel carrying 710 unarmed security force personnel on holiday, marked turning point, european union decided proscribe ltte terrorist organisation on 19 may 2006. resulted in freezing of ltte assets in 27 member nations. in statement, european parliament said ltte did not represent tamils , called on allow political pluralism , alternate democratic voices in northern , eastern parts of sri lanka . north , east of country continued rocked attacks, new talks scheduled in oslo, norway, between 8–9 june. delegations both sides arrived in oslo, talks cancelled when ltte refused meet directly government delegation, claiming fighters not allowed safe passage travel talks. norwegian mediator erik solheim told journalists ltte should take direct responsibility collapse of talks.

further violence followed, including vankalai massacre. sri lankan army , tamil tiger rebels blamed each other killings. there kebithigollewa massacre in ltte attacked bus, killing @ least 64 sinhalese civilians , prompting more air strikes air force, , assassination of sri lanka s third highest-ranking army officer , deputy chief of staff general parami kulatunga on 26 june ltte suicide bomber. these events led slmm question whether cease-fire still said exist.

mavil aru water dispute

a new crisis leading first large-scale fighting since signing of cease-fire occurred when ltte closed sluice gates of mavil aru reservoir on 21 july. mavil aru waterway provided water regions of eastern sri lanka, trincomalee. after cease-fire in 2002, conflict on mavil aru 1 of biggest military confrontations between sri lanka armed forces , ltte. relevance geo-strategic reasons: within mavil aru area, sinhala, muslim , tamil populations live side side. entrance koddiyar bay, inlet trincomalee port , naval base, ltte presence in area threatened sri lankan security forices presence , domination.

closure of mavil aru affected water supply 15,000 families in government-controlled areas. after initial negotiations , efforts slmm open gates failed, sri lanka military initiated operation achieve re-opening of sluice gates.

president rajapaksa said supply of water non-negotiable fundamental human right. additionally, government spokesman said utilities not used bargaining tools rebels. government deployed army , air force offensive, attacking not region of mavil aru ltte positions in batticaloa, , vavuniya. air force planes attacked ltte positions on 26 july, , ground troops began operation open gate. sluice gates reopened on 8 august, conflicting reports opened them. initially, slmm claimed managed persuade ltte lift waterway blockade conditionally. ltte claimed opened sluice gates on humanitarian grounds , although disputed military correspondents, stated water began flowing after security forces carried out precise bombing of mavil aru anicut. eventually, following heavy fighting, government troops gained full control of mavil aru reservoir on 15 august. consequences of operation watershed 150 civilians killed , more 50,000 refugees mutur , villages nearby. precedent of eelam war iv.

ltte offensives in muttur , jaffna

as fierce fighting ongoing in vicinity of mavil aru, violence spread trincomalee, ltte launched attack on crucial sri lanka navy base, , strategic government-controlled coastal town of muttur in august, resulting in deaths of @ least 30 civilians , displacing 25,000 residents of area. clashes erupted on 2 august 2006 when ltte launched heavy artillery attack on muttur , moved in, gaining control of parts of town. military retaliated, , re-established full control on town 5 august, killing on 150 ltte fighters in heavy clashes.

soon afterwards, 17 persons working international french charity action against hunger (acf) in muthur, massacred. found lying face down on floor of office, shot death, still wearing marked t-shirts indicating international humanitarian workers. murders prompted widespread international condemnation. slmm claimed government behind attack, government denied allegation calling pathetic , biased , , stated slmm had no right make such statement because not professionals in autopsy or post-mortem.

meanwhile, in north of country, of bloodiest fighting since 2001 took place after ltte launched massive attacks on sri lanka army defense lines on jaffna peninsula on 11 august. ltte used force of 400–500 fighters in attacks, consisted of land , amphibious assaults, , fired barrage of artillery @ government positions, including key military airbase @ palaly. ltte estimated have lost on 200 fighters in operation, while 90 sri lankan soldiers , sailors killed.

as ground battles ongoing in north , east of country, sri lanka air force carried out air strike against facility in rebel-held mullaitivu area, killing number of tamil girls. although ltte claimed 61 girls killed, slmm stated able count 19 bodies. government stated ltte training facility , children ltte child soldiers, although ltte claimed victims schoolgirls attending course on first aid @ orphanage.

on same day convoy carrying pakistani high commissioner sri lanka, bashir wali mohamed, attacked when claymore antipersonnel mine concealed within auto rickshaw blew passed by. high commissioner escaped unhurt, 7 people killed , 17 injured in blast. high commissioner claimed india believed have carried out, in order intimidate pakistan, 1 of main suppliers of military equipment sri lankan government. pakistan had promised 1 shipload of equipment every 10 days in coming months.

fall of sampur

since resumption of violence, concerns mounting among military establishment strategically crucial sri lanka navy base in trincomalee under severe threat ltte gun positions located in , around sampur, lies across koddiyar bay trincomalee. artillery fired ltte bases in area potentially cripple naval base, bringing complete standstill , cutting military supply chain jaffna. movements of naval vessels under constant surveillance of ltte. these fears backed military advisory team visited island in 2005.

following clashes in mavil aru , muttur, ltte had intensified attacks targeting naval base in trincomalee, , in speech on 21 august sri lankan president mahinda rajapakse made clear government intentions neutralize ltte threat sampur. on 28 august military launched assault retake ltte camps in sampur , adjoining kaddaiparichchan , thoppur areas. led ltte declare if offensive continued, cease-fire officially over.

after steady progress, security forces led brigade commander sarath wijesinghe recaptured sampur ltte on 4 september , began establish military bases there, ltte admitted defeat , stated fighters withdrew strategically important town. marked first significant territorial change of hands since signing of cease-fire agreement in 2002. sri lankan military estimated 33 of personnel killed in offensive, along on 200 ltte fighters.

ltte retaliation , further peace talks

the ltte struck in october. first, killed 130 soldiers in fierce battle @ muhamalai, crossing-point between government- , ltte-controlled area in north of country. days later, suspected ltte suicide bomber struck naval convoy in habarana, in center of country, killing 100 sailors returning home on leave. deadliest suicide attack in history of conflict.

two days later ltte sea tiger forces launched attack against dakshina naval base in southern port city of galle. farthest south major ltte attack had taken place, , involved 15 ltte fighters arrived in 5 suicide boats. attack repulsed government, , damage naval base minimal. 15 ltte fighers believed have died in attack, along 1 navy sailor.

despite these incidents, both parties agreed unconditionally attend peace talks in geneva on 28–29 october. however, peace talks broke down due disagreements on reopening of key a9 highway, link between jaffna , government-controlled areas in south. while ltte wanted highway, closed following fierce battles in august, reopened, government refused, stating ltte use collect taxes people passing through , use launch further offensives against government troops.

following dawn of new year, suspected ltte fighters carried out 2 bus bombings in south of country, killing 21 civilians. news reports stated attacks bore hallmarks of ltte attack. sri lankan government condemned attacks , blamed ltte carrying them out, although ltte denied involvement.

government offensive in east

in december 2006 sri lankan government officials announced plans drive ltte out of eastern province of sri lanka, , use full strength of military defeat ltte in north of country. government stated ltte firing artillery towards civilian settlements in east , using 35,000 people human shields. these claims later backed civilians in area, told reporters held force tamil tigers. on 7 november 2006, amidst conflicting claims, on 45 tamil civilians killed in known vaharai bombing.

subsequently, army began offensive against ltte on 8 december 2006, in batticoloa district objective of taking vakarai, principal stronghold of ltte in east; operation temporarily aborted after week of fighting due large number of civilians in area , difficulty in conducting combat operations due ongoing monsoon rain. on next few weeks estimated 20,000 civilians fled vakarai government-controlled areas, fearing imminent assault. army launched new offensive in mid-january, , vakarai fell advancing troops on 19 january. while offensive in east ongoing, ltte , others accused government of murdering 15 civilians in padahuthurai bombing on 2 january, when air force bombed claimed ltte naval base in illuppaikadavai in northern sri lanka. loss of vakarai had been predicted cut off supply routes of northern tigers cadres in east, weakening tigers diminishing grip on east.

as military offensive ongoing, ltte continued carry out attacks against civilians in government-held territory. on 1 april 2007 military accused ltte of killing 6 sinhalese tsunami aid workers in eastern district of batticaloa. next day suspected ltte fighters set off bomb aboard civilian bus in ampara, killed 17 people, including 3 children.

troops operating in small groups of special forces , commando units began new operation in february clear last remaining ltte fighters eastern province. part of operation, troops captured key ltte base in kokkadicholai on 28 march, , strategic a5 highway on 12 april, bringing entire highway under government control first time in 15 years. meant ltte s presence in rast reduced 140-square-kilometer pocket of jungle in thoppigala area northwest of batticaloa. after three-month-long battle of thoppigala, army captured thoppigala peak on 11 july 2007, ending ltte s military capability in eastern province , concluding eelam war iv in eastern theatre.