June 28, 2007:
The fighting continues at a low level,
causing several hundred casualties a week, and a steady decline in the amount
of territory controlled by the LTTE.
June 27, 2007: The LTTE has called for a resumption of the
ceasefire. The LTTE resumed attacks in 2005, after a nationalist (no partition
of the island) government was elected. This backfired, as it turned out that
three years of ceasefire had made LTTE weaker and the army stronger. The
Western nations providing aid to Sri Lanka are threatening to reduce that aid
if the fighting between the LTTE and the government does not stop. The donor
nations are also upset at the amount of aid that has been stolen by government
and LTTE officials.
June 26, 2007: In the
north, soldiers and police have had some success in detecting and stopping LTTE
terrorists crossing into government territory with roadside bombs.
June 24, 2007: A navy patrol spotted a suspicious boat off
the north coast, moving among a group of fishing boats. When the navy got
closer, the suspect boat exploded, indicating it was an LTTE smuggling
operation. Recently, the navy has eased restrictions on where fishing boats
could go and, as expected, the LTTE smugglers are trying to take advantage of
this.
June 23, 2007: The army continues to find and destroy the
remaining LTTE camps in the east. In the north, the LTTE is using more roadside
bombs and ambushes to try and impede army advances into territory formerly
controlled by the LTTE. Some of the LTTE attacks have been carried out in
government controlled territory. This is made possible because of the large
Tamil population in the north. The Tamil civilians are still too intimidated by
the LTTE to report on such terrorist activity.
June 22, 2007: Britain has
arrested the two top LTTE representatives in the country, and broke up the LTTE
"tax collection" organization, that used intimidation to force local
Tamils into making donations. The tax collectors got to keep a percentage of
whatever they collected, making it a very lucrative undertaking. A similar operation in Sri Lankas capital was
also uncovered and shut down. There are many Tamil refugees in the capital, and
the LTTE demanded that they donate.
June 21, 2007: LTTE fighters in the east have been told by
the LTTE high command to fend for themselves. Most have already done that,
either surrendering or trying to blend back into the civilian population.
