Sri Lanka/South Asia

Army claims anti-Tiger advances, Saarc summit closes

Article published on the 2008-08-03 Latest update 2008-08-03 13:52 TU

Sri Lanka's Rajapaksa greets India's Singh, watched by Maldives President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Nepal's Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani
(Photo: Reuters)

Sri Lanka's Defence Ministry Saturday claimed that the army has entered the district of Kilinochchi, putting it about 30 kilometers from the de-facto capital of Tamil Tiger rebels. In Colombo South Asian leaders agreed to work together to fight "all forms of terrorist violence" and boost trade at the end of the South Asia Association for Regional Co-operation (Saarc) summit.

After heavy fighting on Friday, the army claims to have seized important positions from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and killed about 50 fighters.

The military claims to have entered the district of Kilinochchi, meaning troops are about 30 kilometers from the Tigers' de-facto capital, where rebel leader Veluppillai Prabhakaran is belived to be based. The military says that it has captured the town of Vellankulam.

The LTTE claims to have killed at least 30 soldiers and wounded over 60 and to have fought off an assault on Mallavi in Mullaiteevu district.

The government has been gradually gaining ground in an offensive which followed the breakdown of peace talks with the Tamil movement.

In Colombo South Asian leaders ended their summit with a call for collective action to fight "all forms of terrorist violence", after India and Afghanistan accused Pakistan of backing Taliban and other Islamist insurgency.

The government hoped that the summit would show that security is good in Colombo and that a major event can pass off without violent incident, says correspondent Amal Jayasinghe.

But not everbody was convinced, he told RFI.

"The Indians did not want to use Sri Lankan security 100 per cent. They brought two warships, a few helicopters and their own bullet-proof vehicles."

The Saarc final statement also promised to implement a regional trade pact which was signed in 1995 but never fully put into action. They hope to build energy and food security, including regional hydro-power, gas pipelines and grid connections.