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LTTE ready for talks, or wider war
Tuesday, 12 September 2006 - 7:42 PM SL Time
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Sri Lanka`s Tamil Tigers are ready for talks with the government to halt a new episode of civil war, a top rebel leader said on Tuesday, but he warned violence would spread if army offensives continued.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) pulled out of peace talks indefinitely in April and a new bout of fighting erupted in late July, killing hundreds of troops, civilians and rebels in the worst violence since a 2002 ceasefire.
`The LTTE is ready for talks,` Tiger political wing leader S.P. Thamilselvan told Reuters in an e-mail interview. `However, the opportunities for resuming the talks will be much stronger when the Sri Lankan government ceases its military attacks and all the (truce) articles are fully respected and implemented.`
There was no immediate response from Sri Lanka`s government, but earlier defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told Reuters it was time for the Tigers to `talk serious business... and get down to the core issues`.
Diplomats reacted cautiously to the rebel offer. Many see little genuine effort from either side to defuse the renewed war, and fear further escalation.
One diplomat said he saw the Tigers offer of talks as a conditional one -- dependent on an end to violence -- and not necessarily enough to break the impasse.
But another said the comments would be factored in to a meeting of the island`s main donors -- Japan, the European Union, the United States and Norway -- in Brussels later on Tuesday.
Sri Lanka`s military and the Tigers each accuse the other of trying to restart a two-decade civil war that has killed more than 65,000 people since 1983 and forced hundreds of thousands more to flee their homes.
More than 200,000 people have sought refuge in tented camps across the northeast in the past six weeks.
Both sides have mounted offensive operations during the latest bout of fighting. The military has captured rebel territory near the strategic northeastern port of Trincomalee and says it has overrun the Tiger`s frontline trenches and bunkers in the Jaffna peninsula in the far north.
Intermittent mortar fire continued along the frontline in Jaffna on Tuesday, the army said, saying it had advanced around 800 metres across the heavily mined no-man`s land since Saturday.
The army said 35 of its soldiers had died and 133 been taken to hospital after the latest clashes.
`A FULL-SCALE WAR`
The Tigers warned that they could take the fight to the largely peaceful south of the island if the army continued to attack `the Tamil homeland` in the north and east.
`I am afraid there is a possibility that this will turn into a full scale war,` Thamilselvan said.
Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) appealed to both sides to unblock the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid to tens of thousands of people trapped by the conflict.
A ship which arrived in the besieged government-held town of Jaffa last Saturday, carrying 890 tonnes of food provided by the United Nations food agency, had been unable to unload, WFP said, because the Tigers were refusing to grant security guarantees.
`They maintain that the supplies should be taken by road and they won`t give security guarantees by sea unless the defence ministry opens a passage point allowing access to the northern region under Tamil control,` spokeswoman Christiane Berthiaume told a news conference in Geneva.
`So on the one hand the Tamils are preventing the boats from arriving and the defence ministry is also preventing us from reaching regions under Tamil control,` she said.
`We are caught up in a total impasse,` she added.
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saliya
Joined: Mar 2005
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 12 Sep 2006 12:49:00 GMT Report for Abuse
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| Yes now LTTE does not have any alternative than inviting for peace talk. This is old story of LTTE and when they are weak they want to pass time on peace talks. GOSL is experincing this and therefore offences aganst LTTE should not stop during the talks. |
Nayaa
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 12 Sep 2006 12:49:43 GMT Report for Abuse
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What a joke to say SL Army is violating the CFA while LTTE is firing artillery fire towards SL FDL. SL Army is only defending and trying to neutralize LTTE artillery. As soon as LTTE is beaten they cry crocodile tears and ask for help from international community.
Why should international community help terrorists? Terrorists in Jaffana have civilian clothes and they place claymore bombs. When these terrorists are killed the lying Tamilnet website always cries and tells civilians are killed. It is terrorists who are killed not civilians.
In that case all the terrorists who are doing terrorist work must be kissed on their cheek and pet them as they are in civilian clothes. |
Dewey
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 12 Sep 2006 12:52:13 GMT Report for Abuse
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| Is this their true intentions or just to satisfy international media? True intensions should follow real actions. Time will tell. |
tigeress19
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 12 Sep 2006 12:54:32 GMT Report for Abuse
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Ltte should wait till the gosl reaches the equal number of CFA violations as ltte did as slmm claimed for wider full scale war!
mean while open the A9 and close the sea routes! |
Intrepid
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12 Sep 2006 12:56:10 GMT Report for Abuse
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| What is the difference between current operations and 'Full Scale War'? |
Helaya
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 12 Sep 2006 12:56:38 GMT Report for Abuse
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'However, the opportunities for resuming the talks will be much stronger when the Sri Lankan government ceases its military attacks and all the (truce) articles are fully respected and implemented.'
That's what they really need. All the other things are bull-s*** |
Revy
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12 Sep 2006 12:56:56 GMT Report for Abuse
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Looks like nobody bothers to actually read the article before posting???
(not you Dewey the other two LOL)
'The LTTE is ready for talks,' Tiger political wing leader S.P. Thamilselvan told Reuters in an e-mail interview. 'However, the opportunities for resuming the talks will be much stronger when the Sri Lankan government ceases its military attacks and ALL THE (TRUCE) ARTICLES ARE FULLY RESPECTED AND IMPLEMENTED.'
There is nothing new here, so not sure why the international media is getting all excited (must be a slow news day). This is what the LTTE have said all along. ABIDE BY THE CFA and they are ready for talks.
Of course the GoSL will never abide by the CFA since one of the primary articles in the CFA is restoring normalcy to the Tamil civilians and disarming ALL paramilitaries, which means not just Karuna but the EPDP too. |
Dewey
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12 Sep 2006 12:58:04 GMT Report for Abuse
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mean while open the A9 and close the sea routes!
I guess you intall a gate with a traffic light on the sea route. Gate has to be extra long now because it cannot be operated from sampoor. |
Pachaya1
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12 Sep 2006 12:59:59 GMT Report for Abuse
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A ship which arrived in the besieged government-held town of Jaffa last Saturday, carrying 890 tonnes of food provided by the United Nations food agency, had been unable to unload, WFP said, because the Tigers were refusing to grant security guarantees
This clearly shows these killers don't have a clue about their own people other than calling 'Tamil Homeland' rubbish.
President Mahinda should not give into any fallacies any more, just finish the scoundrels off then talk about peace. No point dragging for another stint of peace talks, what is there to talk? Stop hitting hard at LTTE!! Which must be done and to rid the innocent people from this evil tyranny.
Patrick De Silva of Maradana |
Revy
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12 Sep 2006 13:00:17 GMT Report for Abuse
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060912/wl_sthasia_afp/srilankaunrestrelief_060912092400
Tigress don't worry sea route closure is coming soon, this is the first step, Rumbuttan got his knickers in a knot over not having the ICRC as human shields, guess they will resort to using Tamil civilians again on the ships.
Edited By - Revy - 12 Sep 2006 13:00:34 GMT |
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