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| Curfew in Batticaola; 23 killed in five days |
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 (Lanka-e-News, November 29, 2008, 10.00 PM) A police curfew has been imposed in Batticaloa district since this morning (29).
Police media spokesman SSP Ranjith Gunasekara said that the aim pf the curfew was to conduct a special search in the area since the killings increased rapidly in the district during the past few days. The search operation is now underway with the participation of police, Army and Special Task Force.
All shops remained in the district and the trafic became to a standstill since the curfew, said our Batticaloa correspondent.
The reported further said that the police and security forces were carying out searches door to door in Valachchanai, Kokadicholai, Kaluwankerni, Vakarai, kalawanchikudi, Kaluthawalai, Pattipolai, Vavunathivu, Velilaveli, Mawadiwembu, Chenkaladi, Kiran and Puthukudirippu Tamil villages.
Meanwhile two soldiers were killed this morning by a claymore in Kalawanchikudi.
Contrasting to the earlier claims of the state that the Eastern Province was liberated from LTTE, now the security forces say that the LTTE has now infiltrated in the area as small groups. In Batticaloa alone, 23 killings took place within a span of five days from last Sunday (23) and Friday (28).
The police spokesman said that the four persons killed in a clash with the Army at Horowpothana was one such group. The three persons suspected for the killing of the doctor Palitha Padmakumara that were killed by police was another group. He said that police had information that LTTE had infiltrated the area in such small groups.
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However, independent sources say that the killing spree came to a sharp increase after Chief Minister Pillaiyan’s private secretary Raghu was assassinated at Athurugiriya in Colombo suburbs.
(In the photos curfew struck Batticalao appears as a ghost towm) |
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