LTTE Headquarters,
                                                Tamil Eelam.
                                                15. August 1997

SPECIAL PRESS RELEASE
NEWS FROM TAMIL EELAM


SRI LANKAN WAR PLANES BOMB CHURCH, KILLING 9

Two Sri Lankan Kfir bombers today at 9 AM bombed a Catholic Church in
Vavunikulam (Vanni) killing 9 innocent Tamil civilians and critically
wounding 15 more. The victims were among several hundred displaced
Tamil refugees taking shelter in the church after being made homeless
from government«s 3 month long military operation Jeya Sikuru. Six of
the dead have so far been identified but the remaining three bodies«
reduced to bones and flesh« were too badly disfigured to recognise.
The attack was similar to one carried out by Sri Lankan forces in 1995
when war planes deliberately killed scores of Tamils who the military
asked to gather in Navaly church for safety.

Following is a list of the dead and injured:

CIVILIANS KILLED

1) Thesingarasa Thangamani (female, 48)
2) Thesingarasa Vasanthakumari (female, 17)
3) Nadarasa Pushpamalar (female, 41)
4) Nadarasa Gajan (male, 4)
5) Ponnuthurai Annamalar (female, 40)
6) Thurairatnam Parameswary (female 46)
   (3 bodies remain unidentified)

CIVILIANS CRITICALLY INJURED

 1) Jeyamohan (male,18)                  2) Nakapoorani (female 32)
 3) Panchali (female,56)                 4) Mathushan (male, 2)
 5) Suresh (male, 27)                    6) Kauri (female, 28)
 7) Nakasanthi (female,13)               8) Sarmila (female,9)           
 9) Santhanam (male,59)                 10) Vijayarasa (male,16)
11) Selvaranee (female,22)              12) Sritharan (male,3)
13) Jeyachanthiran (male,15)            14) Kalingarasa (male,38)
15)  Rasamalar (female, 55)


Political Committee,
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
	
(English translation of the LTTE statement released by LTTE
International Secretariat, 211 Katherine Road, London E6 1BU,
United Kingdom.  Tel:0181- 503 4294)