Sri Lanka - interview

President hails victory in Kilinochchi, blast in Colombo kills two airmen

Article published on the 2009-01-02 Latest update 2009-01-02 14:11 TU

A Sri Lankan Air Force K-8 aircraft takes off from Bandaranaike International Airport air base
(Photo: Reuters)

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse has declared "an unparalleled victory", as the army says that its soldiers have entered the de facto capital of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Kilinochchi. But, as government supporters celebrate in the street, a powerful suicide blast hit airforce headquarters, killing two airmen and injuring 32, according to police. 

 

A top civil servant confirms the government claim and predicts that "democracy will be restored".

"It is very clear now that the security forces have entered Kilinochchi," Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona told RFI.

"This is an unparalleled victory for the entire nation," President Mahinda Rajapakse said in a national address Friday. Earlier army representatives said that fighting continued in the town.

The government claim cannot be verified, since journalists are banned from the area and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have not commented.

Kohona predicts that refugees will be encouraged to return to war-hit areas and that provincial elections should take place soon.

"Once the vani [district] is cleared of the LTTE terrorist groups, we will restore democracy, elections will be held and the people of that area will be then able to manage their own affairs," he says.

"In fact, anyone who is displaced will now be encouraged to return to their own villages, where essential supplies will be provided to ensure that there are no shortages of whatever kind."

Government troops have advanced slowly through the northern Jaffna peninsula since Rajapakse pulled out of a ceasefire last year.

Capturing Kilinocchi would be a substantial blow to the mini-state that the LTTE has been running and would force the movement to return to guerrilla tactics.

In a New Year's address on Thursday Rajapakse promised that 2009 would see a "heroic victory" against the LTTE.