LTTE Headquarters,
                                                Tamil Eelam.
                                                13. March 1997


PRESS RELEASE
NEWS FROM TAMIL EELAM

HEAVY SHELLING FROM MANAL-ARU ARMY CAMP
        Sri Lankan artillery pieces are ferociously shelling
        surrounding Tamil villages from Manal-Aru military base.
        Meanwhile Puccara and Kfir jets have flown several sorties
        dropping bombs and unleashing rocket-fire on these residential
        areas. The raid started at 5.30 this morning and is still
        continuing at 9.00 am, when this report was filed. It is
        reasonably assumed human life has been lost though precise
        details are difficult to ascertain while the assault is
        continuing.

6 REFUGEES KILLED IN SHELLING
        Six Tamil refugees huddled inside the Valaichchenai refugee
        camp in Batticaloa have been struck and killed by shellfire
        from Valaichchenai police station. Another six have been
        critically injured, including four children -
        Sivalingam Sarojinidevi (8), Nadarasa Sinnarasa (12),
        Uthayakpao (12) and J. Arichandran (16).

        Indiscriminate artillery fire from army positions in the east
        has stepped up considerably since the fall of Vavunathivu
        army camp.

        On Sunday, a mother and daughter were killed in Murunkan by
        shelling from Kinniyady army camp (Batticaloa) while on Saturday
        two Tamil women - Vivmaladevi and Arunthavam - were badly wounded
        when shells rained on Kannankuda. Doctors at Batticaloa hospital
        say Arunthavam's chances of survival are slim due to extensive
        blood-loss. Relatives were unable to get her to the hospital
        in time because there was no safe route - she was struck by the
        shells at 7.30 in the morning and only reached hospital at 7.30
        the same evening.

CATHOLIC BOY FOUND DEAD ON ROADSIDE
        The body of a Tamil boy slain by Sri Lankan soldiers on his way
        to morning prayers has been discovered on the busy Barr Road in
        Batticaloa town. Thavarasa Gomes Antonyrasa was a devout Catholic
        who attended church regularly despite the risks of army harassment
        ever-present. The details surrounding this attack have prompted
        residents to fear the return of what were termed "white van"
        murders carried out anonymously by security forces lurking in
        parked vehicles.

TAMIL EELAM POLICE RETURN BOAT VICTIMS' BELONGINGS
        Suitcases and luggage have been recovered from the sea where
        130 Tamils drowned trying to escape to India during a recent
        army offensive. The luggage is now being offered back to relatives
        of the deceased. The Tamil Eelam police in Mankulam are now in
        possession of the items and have said survivors and next-of-kin
        of those who died may recover their belongings.

LTTE RANKS KEEP ON SWELLING
        The influx of new LTTE recruits from the Vanni has been
        overwhelming. It is mainly young men and women who are joining,
        expressing the conviction that all other activities must wait until
        Tamil Eelam is safe from advancing Sinhala forces. Many new
        recruits, in their address to the nation, state that the invading
        Sri Lankan force must be stopped in their tracks; it is no good
        depending on good luck; force must be met with force. This seems
        to be the general pattern of thinking amongst the Tamil Eelam
        youth today. This is not surprising when all evidence from
        army-occupied areas points to a brutal regime under which Tamils
        are rendered helpless victims to Sri Lankan military force. The
        residents of the Vanni, clearly, are not prepared to allow the rest
        of Tamil Eelam to  become occupied in this manner.

ARMY PATROLS DIMINISH IN EAST
        Parts of the east have seen a drop in army patrols following
        the LTTE's latest military successes there. The Kalkudah-Valaichchenai
        highway in particular has shown little signs of army presence.

TWO TAMILS MISSING AFTER ARREST
        Two Tamil civilians living near the Vavunathivu army camp have
        gone missing after arrest by Sri Lankan troops. Soldiers arriving
        back at the recently fallen Vavunathivu camp took to arresting
        nearby residents. The following day a 25-year old man, Thavarajah
        Thomas Antony, was found dead on a Batticaloa roadside his body
        riddled with bullets.

TWO SOLDIERS DIE - VADAMARADCHY
        LTTE units intercepted soldiers in Vadamaradchy (Jaffna peninsula)
        on Saturday killing two. The soldiers were 100 metres from the
        Thunnalai Yakkarai army camp when the attack happened. There were
        no LTTE casualties.

THREE SOLDIERS DIE IN FRIENDLY FIRE
        Three Sri Lankan soldiers have been killed by their own forces
        while they were attending to one of their roadblocks at the
        Imayanan-Vilunthanady road (Vadamaradchy). A passing Sri Lankan
        patrol opened fire on the men in a fit of panic thinking they
        were LTTE members.

 

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 / Fax: 0181-470 8593)