S.Lanka navy says rebels kill 11, war fears rise
COLOMBO, April 11 (Reuters) - Suspected Sri Lankan Tamil rebels killed 11 people in an attack on a naval bus on Tuesday, officials said, stoking fears that upcoming peace talks with the government would not take place and civil war might resume.
It was the second major attack on the military in two days. At least 20 people have died since Friday in a surge of violence in the country ahead of the peace talks in Geneva next week.
An army spokesman said a vehicle convoy was taking services personnel on holiday from the northeastern port of Trincomalee when rebels detonated a claymore mine, spraying a hail of steel fragments into the bus.
"The third bus in the convoy was caught in the blast," an army spokesman said. "Ten sailors were killed and the civilian bus driver. Nine navy were wounded and also one U.K. woman."
The director of the nearby Kantale Hospital told Reuters a British national and his or her spouse, who was of Sri Lankan origin, had been wounded. More details were not immediately available.
The Tamil Tiger rebels and the government have held one round of peace talks in Geneva to reinforce a shaky 2002 ceasefire and are due to hold another round between April 19-21.
A surge in violence in December and January fell off after the two sides agreed to the talks, but seems to have flared anew. On Monday, five soldiers and two passers-by were killed in another mine attack in the war-ravaged north of the country.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose two decade war for a homeland for minority Tamils killed more than 64,000 people before the 2002 ceasefire, have denied responsibility for both attacks.
"We were not involved," rebel media co-ordinator Daya Master said. In the past, the rebels have said the attacks were carried out by angry local Tamil groups, but analysts and diplomats say the sophisticated ambushes could only have been done by the Tigers.
"NOT POSTURING"
The rise in violence of the last week is seen by some as a rebel attempt to extract concessions ahead of the talks, but others fear the entire peace process might be coming apart at the seams.
"This is not posturing," said Janes' Defence Weekly analyst Iqbal Athas. "This is a very clear indication that Geneva is becoming very doubtful. The bottom line is that they are showing that they are strong and that they can take on the military."
The rebels demand the navy allow safe passage for a Sea Tiger vessel carrying eastern rebel commanders to their northern headquarters before talks can take place -- but the attacks are not seen making the government particularly keen to co-operate.
If the talks do not take place, diplomats say they could be postponed or cancelled outright. If the latter happens, some see little alternative to rising violence and, if and when the army retaliates, war.
On Monday, Canada followed Britain and the United States by adding the Tigers to their list of banned terrorist groups alongside al Qaeda, and analysts say other countries might follow suit if civil war resumes, hitting rebel fundraising overseas.
At the scene of Monday's ambush at Mirusuvil on the army-held Jaffna peninsula, only a few miles from the de facto state the rebels have run since the ceasefire, Tamil civilians were unusually critical of the attackers -- although they did not blame the Tigers by name.
"It was quite untimely and unnecessary," said small businessman Kandiah Tharmalingam, 40, who was only 150 metres (yards) away when the mine exploded. "When our leaders are planning to attend the second round of talks, this gives a bad image among the international community." (additional reporting by Joe Ariyaratnam in MIRUSUVIL and Ranga Sirilal in COLOMBO)
It was the second major attack on the military in two days. At least 20 people have died since Friday in a surge of violence in the country ahead of the peace talks in Geneva next week.
An army spokesman said a vehicle convoy was taking services personnel on holiday from the northeastern port of Trincomalee when rebels detonated a claymore mine, spraying a hail of steel fragments into the bus.
"The third bus in the convoy was caught in the blast," an army spokesman said. "Ten sailors were killed and the civilian bus driver. Nine navy were wounded and also one U.K. woman."
The director of the nearby Kantale Hospital told Reuters a British national and his or her spouse, who was of Sri Lankan origin, had been wounded. More details were not immediately available.
The Tamil Tiger rebels and the government have held one round of peace talks in Geneva to reinforce a shaky 2002 ceasefire and are due to hold another round between April 19-21.
A surge in violence in December and January fell off after the two sides agreed to the talks, but seems to have flared anew. On Monday, five soldiers and two passers-by were killed in another mine attack in the war-ravaged north of the country.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), whose two decade war for a homeland for minority Tamils killed more than 64,000 people before the 2002 ceasefire, have denied responsibility for both attacks.
"We were not involved," rebel media co-ordinator Daya Master said. In the past, the rebels have said the attacks were carried out by angry local Tamil groups, but analysts and diplomats say the sophisticated ambushes could only have been done by the Tigers.
"NOT POSTURING"
The rise in violence of the last week is seen by some as a rebel attempt to extract concessions ahead of the talks, but others fear the entire peace process might be coming apart at the seams.
"This is not posturing," said Janes' Defence Weekly analyst Iqbal Athas. "This is a very clear indication that Geneva is becoming very doubtful. The bottom line is that they are showing that they are strong and that they can take on the military."
The rebels demand the navy allow safe passage for a Sea Tiger vessel carrying eastern rebel commanders to their northern headquarters before talks can take place -- but the attacks are not seen making the government particularly keen to co-operate.
If the talks do not take place, diplomats say they could be postponed or cancelled outright. If the latter happens, some see little alternative to rising violence and, if and when the army retaliates, war.
On Monday, Canada followed Britain and the United States by adding the Tigers to their list of banned terrorist groups alongside al Qaeda, and analysts say other countries might follow suit if civil war resumes, hitting rebel fundraising overseas.
At the scene of Monday's ambush at Mirusuvil on the army-held Jaffna peninsula, only a few miles from the de facto state the rebels have run since the ceasefire, Tamil civilians were unusually critical of the attackers -- although they did not blame the Tigers by name.
"It was quite untimely and unnecessary," said small businessman Kandiah Tharmalingam, 40, who was only 150 metres (yards) away when the mine exploded. "When our leaders are planning to attend the second round of talks, this gives a bad image among the international community." (additional reporting by Joe Ariyaratnam in MIRUSUVIL and Ranga Sirilal in COLOMBO)
posted by Marko at 4/11/2006 06:35:00 AM
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