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Situation report on 4 February 2007

Fishermen from Mullaithivu who have gone to sea for fishing have come under attack by Sri Lankan Navy for the last three days. Many fishermen escaped being hurt because they left their nets and rushed back to sea.

According to one fisherman Keethan who was attacked, he had put his net overnight and returned to collect the catch the 5.00am the next day. He saw the Sri Lankan Navy at sea. Keethan and his co-worker quickly tried to drag the net into their boat. It was then that the co-worker said that the Navy is approaching their boat. Immediately Keetahn told his co-worker to lie in the boat, cut his net from the boat and rushed to the shore. They came under fire from the Navy as they rushed back to the sea.

Several other fishermen at sea at that time were also forced to leave their nets and rush to the shore.

Alampil, a coastal village in Mullaithivu, also came under Sri Lankan Navy fire on 4 February at 8.00am. Two homes were destroyed in this indiscriminate fire from the Sri Lankan Navy.

Batticaloa Tamil villages under Sri Lankan military artillery fire

Tamil villages in Batticaloa, Kayamadhu, Kurinchamunai, and Mankikaddu were continually attacked with artillery by the Sri Lankan military. Many civilian settlements were being deliberately targeted. People are displacing.

These villages are farming villages with large acreages of paddy fields. It is harvesting time now. The continual shelling is not only destroying the harvest but also interrupting the harvest work causing loss of harvest to people.

At time people sleep at the fields to protect the harvest from wild animals. Due to fear of shelling people are not sleeping in the fields. As a result wild animals are also causing destruction to the harvest.

Sri Lankan military’s all night shelling from northern FDL into LTTE areas

Starting from midnight on 3 February through to all day next day, Sri Lankan military continued to fire artillery shells and multi-barrel rockets from their Muhamalai and Nagarkovil camps into LTTE areas.

From the Muhamalai camp villages of Palai, Tharmakerni, Puthukadu, Soranpatru, Masar, Muhavil and Iyakkachchi were attacked. Since all the people in these villages have already displaced there were no casualties. However, many productive trees and plants were destroyed.

At the same time, from the Nagarkovil Sri Lankan military camp, villages lying between Maruthankerni to Vetrilaikerni came under artillery fire. People who were stationed in these areas for fishing were forced to displace as a result of the shelling.

05 February 2007

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