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Sri Lanka
Government warns aid agencies, journalists could be expelled
Article published on the 2009-02-01 Latest update 2009-02-02 10:40 TU
Sri Lankan soldiers and a Tamil Tiger mural in Mullaitivu.
(Photo: Reuters)
Sri Lanka's top defence official warned Sunday that aid agencies, diplomats and journalists could be kicked out of the country if they support the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Meanwhile, thousands of civilians are trapped as the LTTE are cornered in a small area of jungle in the northeast.
Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapakse, who is leading the fight against the LTTE, said Sunday that there would be “dire consequences” for anyone attempting to give “terrorists a second breath of life”.
The Tigers lost large portions of their territory last month when government troops flushed them out of the Jaffna peninsula. They have been pushed back to a narrow strip of land in the north.
“There is an escalation in the level of fighting, we are seeing security forces advancing deeper into the remaining territory held by the Tamil Tigers,” said correspondent Amal Jayasinghe.
Correspondent: Amal Jayasinghe, Colombo
A number of civilians have been trapped by the fighting as the rebels have been pushed into a region of around 300 square kilometres.
The United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other organisations have called for the evacuation of non-combatants.
But the government accuses the Tigers of using civilians as human shields and says the estimates of the number of people in the area are grossly exaggerated.
“There is growing concern about the safety of civilians,” Jayasinghe told RFI. “We are talking about 100,000 to possibly a quarter of million people, who are trapped by the fighting. And they have no way of getting out of the firing line.”
Independent media are unable to access the conflict zone, and the government has accused some broadcasters of sensationalising civilian hardship.
“The government is not willing at this stage to enter a ceasefire,” said Jayasinghe. “Neither party is really listening to the international community.”
