Decisive Sri Lankan Armed Forces victory End of Tamil Tiger (LTTE) conventional military capabilities End of Tamil Tiger (LTTE) Guerrilla warfare capabilities Destruction of LTTE military infrastructure and top leadership
Eelam War IV is the name given to the fourth and final phase of armed conflict between the Sri Lankan military and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Renewed hostilities began on the 26 July 2006, when Sri Lanka Air Forcefighter jets bombed several LTTE camps around Mavil Aruanicut. The government's casus belli was that the LTTE had cut off the water supply to surrounding paddy fields in the area. Shutting down the sluice gates of the Mavil Aru on July 21 depriving the water to over 15,000 people - Sinhalese and Muslim settlers under Sri Lankan state-sponsored colonisation schemes in Trincomalee district. They were denied of water for drinking and also cultivating over 30,000 acres of paddy and other crops. The fighting resumed after a four-year ceasefire between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and LTTE. Continued fighting led to several territorial gains for the Sri Lankan Army, including the capture of Sampur, Vakarai and other parts of the east. The war took on an added dimension when the LTTE Air Tigers bombed Katunayake airbase on March 26, 2007, the first rebel air attack without external assistance in history.
Eelam War IV ended on 18 May 2009 with the Sri Lanka Army gaining control of the last bit of territory held by the LTTE and with the death of the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. The final few days of the war near Nandikadal Lagoon in the north east of the island saw very heavy fighting and led to Sri Lankan forces being accused of war crimes, which were denied by the government. Some 300,000 Tamil civilians who were trapped inside the war zone and prevented from escaping by the LTTE were caught in the crossfire during the final phase of the war.
On 19 December, amidst efforts by Norway to bring the government and the Tamil Tigers to the negotiating table, the LTTE announced a 30-day ceasefire with the Sri Lankan government and pledged to halt all attacks against government forces.[6] The new government welcomed the move, and reciprocated it 2 days later, announcing a month-long ceasefire and agreeing to lift a long-standing economic embargo on rebel-held territory.[7]
Signing of MoU
The two sides formalized a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on February 22, 2002 and signed a permanent ceasefire agreement (CFA). Norway was named mediator, and it was decided that they, together with the other Nordic countries, monitor the ceasefire through a committee of experts named the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission.[8] In August, the government agreed to lift the ban on the LTTE and paved the way for the resumption of direct negotiations with the LTTE.[9]
LTTE Sea Tiger boat patrolling during the peace.
Following the signing of the ceasefire agreement, commercial air flights to Jaffna began and the LTTE opened the key A9 highway, which linked government controlled area in the south with Jaffna and ran through LTTE territory, allowing civilian traffic through the Vanni region for the first time in many years. Many foreign countries also offered substantial financial support if peace was achieved and optimism grew that an end to the decades long conflict was in sight.
The much anticipated peace talks began in Sattahip Naval Base, Chonburi Province, Thailand on the September 16 and 5 further rounds followed in Rose Garden, Nakhorn Pathom Province, Norway and Berlin, Germany.[10] During the talks, both sides agreed to the principle of a federal solution and the Tigers dropped their long standing demand for separate state. This was a key compromise from the LTTE, which had always insisted on an independent Tamil state and it also represented a compromise from the government, which had seldom agreed to more than minimal devolution. Both sides also exchanged prisoners of war for first time.[11]
Beginning of the war
A new crisis leading to the first large-scale fighting since signing of the ceasefire occurred in 2006 when the LTTE closed the sluice gates of the Mavil Arureservoir on July 21 and cut the water supply to 15,000 villages in government controlled areas.[12] After initial negotiations and efforts by the SLMM to open the gates failed, the Air Force attacked LTTE positions on July 26, and ground troops began an operation to open the gate.[13]Palitha Kohona, a government spokesman, stated that the government remained committed to the cease-fire.[14] Likewise, the LTTE also claimed that they were committed to the ceasefire[15]
The sluice gates were eventually reopened on August 8, with conflicting reports as to who actually opened them. Initially, the SLMM claimed that they managed to persuade the LTTE to lift the waterway blockade conditionally.[16] However a government spokesman said that "utilities could not be used as bargaining tools" by the rebels[12] and government forces launched fresh attacks on LTTE positions around the reservoir. These attacks prompted condemnation from SLMM Chief of Staff, who stated "(The government) have the information that the LTTE has made this offer." "It is quite obvious they are not interested in water. They are interested in something else."[12] The LTTE then claimed they opened the sluice gates "on humanitarian grounds".[12][17] Eventually, following heavy fighting with the rebels, government troops gained full control of the Mavil Aru reservoir on August 15.[18]
The war between LTTE and Sri Lankan government started after the failure of Norway brokered cease fire on July 21, 2006, when LTTE cut off the water supply to the rice growing fields in the Mavil aru area in eastern Trincomalee district. The government military claimed the total control of the eastern province after capturing the Thoppigala (Baron's cap) on July 11, 2007 following nearly a year of fighting.[19]
The TMVP contested Batticaloa district local council election on March 10, 2008 and won all 9 councils with a high majority 70% of votes.[20] The party also contested in Eastern Provincial Council election May 10, 2008 under the ruling UPFA banner and UPFA won the election.[21] TMVP's current leader Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan sworn as the Chief Minister of Eastern Provincial Council on May 16, 2008.[22]
Political situation in North and East
Karuna has also been accused of gross human rights violations such as forming death squads,[23] harassing journalists,[23] extrajudicial killings,[24] abductions,[25] and the use of child soldiers against the LTTE.[26][27][28] Apart from that his group has split due to alleged financial corruption issues.[29] Karuna, with the help of the Government of Sri Lanka, was smuggled into Great Britain for refuge.[30][31] He was later arrested by British authorities for illegal entry and is being probed for war crimes.[32]
Sri Lanka pulls out of ceasefire
On January 2, 2008, The Sri Lankan government unanimously decided to formally withdraw from the ceasefire with the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels, which had existed only on paper over the past two years. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake had proposed that the cabinet annul the truce after yet another bomb blast went off on January 2 in the capital, Colombo, killing five and injuring over 28. [33]
"The Government of Sri Lanka yesterday (3rd January 2008) formally notified the Norwegian Government of its decision to terminate the Agreement on a "Ceasefire (CFA) between the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam" concluded on 22nd February 2002. This notification was in terms of Article 4:4 of this Agreement and will take effect 14 days from the date of this notice i.e. 16th January 2008. Accordingly, the Status of Mission Agreement (SOMA) on the Establishment and the Management of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) dated 18th March 2002 between the Royal Norwegian Government and the Government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka will also stand terminated with effect from 16th January 2008."[34]
This was amidst the demands of the defense secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on December 29, 2007.[35] Donor countries such as the United States,[36] Canada,[37] and Norway[38] have shown deep regrets on this decision by the Sri Lankan government. Neighboring India has also shown is dismay of Sri Lanka's abrogation of the ceasefire[39]
War in north
Red area shows the approximate areas of Sri Lanka controlled by the LTTE and the Government, as of December 2005.
This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(November 2010)
Meanwhile, in the north of the country, some of the bloodiest fighting since 2001 took place after the LTTE launched massive attacks on Sri Lanka Army defence lines in the Jaffna peninsula on August 11. The LTTE used a force of 400 to 500 fighters in the attacks which consisted of land and amphibious assaults, and also fired a barrage of artillery at government positions, including the key military airbase at Palali.[40] Initially, the Tigers broke through army defense lines around Muhamalai, and advanced further north,[41] but they were halted after 10 hours of fierce fighting. Isolated battles continued over the next few days, but the LTTE was forced to give up its offensive due to heavy casualties.[42]
Sporadic fighting in the North has been going on for months, but the intensity of the clashes has increased since September 2007. During clashes in the Forward Defence Lines, separating their forces, both sides exchange heavy artillery fire, after which military incursions follow. By December 22, 2007 the LTTE defences at Uyilankulama and Thampanai were lost to advancing troops of the Sri Lanka Army. On December 29, 2007 the Army overran the LTTE stronghold at Parappakandal, Mannar.
In an interview with the 'Sunday Observer' the Sri Lankan Army Commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka said that the Army had occupied the LTTE's Forward Defence Lines and surrounded the Wanni LTTE bases from all directions. He also said that there are around 3,000 Tigers remaining and that the military targets to annihilate them within the first six months of 2008. A day later there were less optimistic statements by Army, Air Force and Navy Commanders. Lt. Gen. Fonseka's believed it was possible to defeat the LTTE in 2008.
The military of Sri Lanka claims that the leader of the LTTE Velupillai Prabhakaran was seriously injured during air strikes carried out by the Sri Lanka Air Force on a bunker complex in Jayanthinagar on November 26, 2007. Earlier, on November 2, 2007 S. P. Thamilselvan, who was the head of the rebels' political wing, was killed during another government air raid. The Sri Lanka Air Force has openly vowed to destroy the entire leadership of the LTTE. On January 5, 2008 Col. Charles, Head of LTTE Military Intelligence, was killed in claymore ambush by a suspected Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit according to a Pro-LTTE website.[43]
Before the government offensive, the war in the Northern front was in a stalemate due to the unique topology of the two major Forward Defence Lines, The Nagarcoil FDL and The Muhamalai FDL.
Capture of Mannar District
On 2 August 2008 the Sri Lankan army captured the town of Vellankulam which was the last bastion of Tigers in the Mannar district.[44] This marked the capture of the entire Mannar district by the Army which took eight months.[45]
On March 22, 2008, a Navy fast attack boat was destroyed after it hit a suspected sea mine laid by Tamil Tiger rebels off the country's north-east coast.[46][47]
As one of the turning point of the Eelam War IV, Sri Lanka Navy ships destroyed 8 LTTE floating warehouses which carried 100,000 each of 122, 130 and 155mm Artillery Ammunition and 60mm and 81mm Mortar Ammunitions. This was the first time Sri Lanka Navy conduct a mission in 4000km deep into the International sea.[48]
The air war
The battle in air is significant for both sides (GoSL and LTTE) in this phase of war. The Sri Lankan Air Force used its attack aircraft to carry out a bombing campaign against identified LTTE targets. The LTTE Air Tigers also used its light aircraft to carry out bombing on the Sri Lankan military.
Major air strikes of SLAF
On August 14, 2006 the SLAF bombed a facility in the rebel-held Mullaitivu area. The LTTE claimed 61 girls were killed, the SLMM stated they were able to count just 19 bodies.[49] The government claimed that it was an LTTE training facility and that the children were LTTE child soldiers,[50] although the LTTE claimed the victims were schoolgirls attending a course on first aid at an orphanage. A team from UNICEF and the Swedish-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) visited the bombed site and said they had found no evidence to support claims the rebels had been using the facility as a military training centre.
On May 7, 2007 at about 0725 supersonic fighter jets of the SLAF bombed a strategic LTTE base and a large fuel storage at Ramanatpuram East of Iranamadu.
In November 2007, Thamilselvan, along with five other high ranking Tamil rebels were killed by a precision air strike carried out by the SLAF on an undisclosed location near the rebels's stronghold town of Kilinochchi.
LTTE air strikes occurred for the first time in history on March 26, 2007 on a SLAF base at Katunayake, killing three Air Force personnel and wounding several.
LTTE aircraft attacked Palali military complex by dropping bombs on April 23, 2007, killing six soldiers and wounding 13.
The LTTE attacked Katunayake air base for the second time on April 26, 2007, one month after their first attack on the same location.
in the early hours of April 29, 2007, LTTE aircraft bombed two fuel tanks at Kolonnawa and Muthurajawela close to Colombo.
On April 23, the Air Tigers conducted their second raid. One aircraft flew toward the Palali Air Base near Jaffna, which is the main military complex in the region. Anti‐aircraft fire prevented the aircraft from bombing the runways, but it instead dropped its bombs on a nearby military bunker, killing six soldiers.
On April 26, Sri Lanka's air defenses in Colombo fired into the sky following reports that unidentified aircraft had been spotted on radar. No attack was reported.
However, a few days later on the early morning of April 29, while the entire nation was watching the Cricket World Cup Final a Tiger aircraft bombed two fuel storage facilities outside Colombo. Chaos followed and electricity in the capital was shut off for nearly an hour. There were no casualties and minimal damage. The security forces were unable to bring down the aircraft prompting much criticism from the public and opposition political parties.
Although the government played down the attack, Shell's Sri Lankan country director, Hassan Madan, told the AFP "There was big damage to our fire-fighting facility and we estimate it will cost us in excess of 75 m rupees ($700,000) to put things back".
On October 22, 2007, Air Tigers launched a pre-dawn combined arms assault on a SLAF airbase at Anuradhapura, about 212 kilometers (132mi) north of the capital, Colombo.
According to the Ministry of Defence, the assault started at around 3:20am, with LTTE ground forces attacking the airbase and overrunning key positions, including an anti-aircraft position, before Air Tiger ultralights dropped bombs on government positions. This resulted in the destruction of eight aircraft and damage to several others.[51] The attack only affected the SLAF's training element.
On 19 May 2009, the Sri Lankan military effectively concluded its 26-year operation against the LTTE. The 58 Division of the Sri Lankan Army led by Brig. Shavendra Silva, 59 Division led by Brig. Prasanna de Silva and the 53 Division commanded by Gen. Kamal Gunaratne, after having boxed in the remaining LTTE cadres into a small area of territory near Nandhikkadal lagoon, linked up and eliminated the remaining cadres. This final battle claimed the lives of several top LTTE leaders, including Jeyam, Bhanu, Lawrence, Pappa, Laxamanan, Balasingham Nadesan, Pottu Amman, Soosai and Velupillai Prabhakaran who was reported to have attempted to flee.[52] On the morning of the 19th, soldiers of the 4th Vijayabahu infantry regiment led by Lt. Col Rohitha Aluvihare claimed to have found the body of Prabhakaran, and so militarily ending a separatist war that had defined Sri Lanka's history for three decades.
On 22 May 2009, Sri Lankan Secretary of Defence Gotabhaya Rajapaksa confirmed that 6,261 personnel of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces had lost their lives and 29,551 were wounded during Eelam War IV since July 2006. Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara added that approximately 22,000 LTTE cadres had died during this time.[53]
Chronology of towns captured by the government of Sri Lanka
Soosai, leader of the Sea Tigers, and Pottu Amman, head of the LTTE intelligence wing, were killed along with Prabhakaran.
Charles Anthony was confirmed dead on May 18, 2009. SL Army has confirmed that the body found in Vellamullivaikkal is that of LTTE chief's son.
Three bodies recovered by SL troops have been identified as those of Nadesan, Puleethevan and Ramesh on May 18, 2009.
Assassinations
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, a Tamil who was highly respected by foreign diplomats and who had been sharply critical of the LTTE, was assassinated at his home on August 12, 2005, allegedly by an LTTE sniper.[56] His assassination led to the marginalisation of the LTTE from the international community.
The assassination of a well renowned Tamil diplomat, the Deputy Peace Secretariat General for Co-ordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP) Kethesh Loganathan on August 12, 2006 at Dehiwala by shooting at around 9:30pm. He had been very keen to bring peace to the country and also participated in Thimphu peace talks in 1980s. Rajapakse condemned the murder and blamed the LTTE.
A roadside bomb killed Non-cabinet Nation Building Minister D. M. Dassanayake on January 8, 2008 at Ja-Ela town, located 19km north of Colombo city.[62][63]
A suspected LTTE suicide bomber killed cabinet Minister of Highways & Road Development Jeyaraj Fernandopulle on April 6, 2008 at Weliveriya Gampaha district.[64]
The 12-year-old son of Velupillai Prabhakaran was executed in May 2009.[65]
Impact of war into civilian life
Amnesty International has also stated that increasing violence was forcing many Sri Lankans to flee the country and that more than 2,800 people had sought shelter in India this year. The state's failure to provide adequate security and to ensure that attacks against civilians are prosecuted has resulted in widespread fear and panic.[66][67] Amnesty international also accused the LTTE of breaking the international law by using civilians as buffers against the army. A researcher for the organisation stated that there were cases where militants had forced people to stay in rebel-held areas to hamper army operations.[68] The United Nations reported more than 20,000 civilians were killed in this recent war.[69][70][71]
Civilians flee the Vanni, January 2009
Since the upsurge in violence in April, nearly 40,000 people were displaced. This came amidst the government's air strikes on civilian areas in the East.[72] Amnesty International quoted UN figures to say that a total of 39,883 people had been displaced in the north and east since April 7 adding that a total of 314,378 people were displaced by the conflict while around 325,000 people were estimated to have been displaced by the tsunami.[73][66][74]
After the International Council of Red Cross, doctors and government officials left the war zone, only the Catholic priests remained with people until the end. One of the priests, Rev. Fr. Mariampillai Sarathjeevan who was leading the refugees to safety, also died in the war zone.[75] The people and the priest did not have food for five days, and exhausted by months of hardship.[76][77][78][79] Unconfirmed reports indicate that the priest was assaulted by soldiers when he approached them for help.
Stephen Rapp, the U.S. ambassador at large for war crimes issues, called for war crimes investigation in October 2009. His department submitted a detailed report to Congress about the incidents happened during the recent conflict in Sri Lanka.[80] On October 25, 2009 The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the United Nations called for an independent, international investigation of possible war crimes committed during the last few months of the war in Sri Lanka.[81] Internal Displacement Monitoring Center of the Norwegian Refugee Council reported that the government of Sri Lanka was holding nearly 300,000 displaced people in military-run internment camps under questionable humanitarian conditions.[82]
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a Tamil militant organization, that was based in the northern and eastern Sri Lanka. The LTTE fought to create an independent Tamil state called Tamil Eelam in the northeast of the island in response to violent persecution and discriminatory policies against Sri Lankan Tamils by the Sinhalese-dominated Sri Lankan Government.
The Sri Lankan civil war was a civil war fought in Sri Lanka from 1983 to 2009. Beginning on 23 July 1983, it was an intermittent insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by Velupillai Prabhakaran. The LTTE fought to create an independent Tamil state called Tamil Eelam in the north-east of the island, due to the continuous discrimination and violent persecution against Sri Lankan Tamils by the Sinhalese-dominated Sri Lanka government.
Velupillai Prabhakaran was a Tamil revolutionary. Prabhakaran was a major figure of Tamil nationalism, and the founder and leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The LTTE was a militant organization that sought to create an independent Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka in reaction to the oppression of the country's Tamil population by the Sri Lankan government. Under his direction, the LTTE undertook a military campaign against the Sri Lankan government for more than 25 years.
The Black Tigers was an elite suicide commando unit of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a militant Tamil separatist organization in Sri Lanka.
The Sea Tigers was the naval wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the Sri Lankan Civil War. It was founded in 1984. The Sea Tigers had a number of small but effective suicide bomber vessels. During its existence it had gained a reputation as a capable adversary for the Sri Lankan Navy. During the civil war, the Sea Tigers had sunk at least 29 Sri Lankan small inshore patrol boats, 20 Dvora-class fast patrol boats, 3 gunboats, 2 Large surveillance command ships, and one freighter.
Anton Balasingham Stanislaus was a Sri Lankan Tamil journalist, rebel and chief political strategist and chief negotiator for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a separatist Tamil militant organisation in Sri Lanka.
TamilNet is an online newspaper that provides news and feature articles on current affairs in Sri Lanka, specifically related to the erstwhile Sri Lankan Civil War. The website was formed by members of the Sri Lankan Tamil community residing in the United States and publishes articles in English, German and French.
Suppayya Paramu Thamilselvan, commonly known as S. P. Tamilselvan,, was the leader of the political wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, an organisation fighting for a separate state for the ethnic Tamil minority in the north and east of Sri Lanka from majority Sinhalese government. He was a prominent negotiator and one of the closest associates of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.
The Kebithigollewa massacre occurred on 15 June 2006 when 60 civilians were killed by an Claymore mine attack on a bus. The U.S and the SLMM claimed that LTTE was the perpetrator.
The Tamil Eelam Air Force or Sky Tigers was the air service branch of the Divisions of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who used it against the Government of Sri Lanka. They also called themselves the Tamileelam Air Force (TAF). Though the existence of the Sky Tigers had been the subject of speculation for many years, the existence of the wing was only revealed after an attack in March 2007, during Eelam War IV.
The Eastern Theatre of Eelam War IV started in the Eastern province of Sri Lanka on July 21, 2006, when the LTTE cut off the water supply to rice fields in eastern Trincomalee district. The government claimed total control of the Eastern province after capturing Thoppigala on July 11, 2007, after nearly a year of fighting. Major battles took place at Sampoor, Vakarai, Kanchikudicharu, Kokkadichloai and Thoppigala. Military and civilian deaths were relatively low on both sides. Government forces captured much military hardware from the LTTE during the conflict. The civilians managed to flee the combat zones, and this reduced civilian casualties, while swelling the number of internally displaced people (IDP). The world health organization (WHO) estimated ~200,300 IDPs, and claims that significant progress occurred in resettling them. The LTTE vowed to attack Sri Lanka's military and economic targets across the country to retaliate for the capture of the Eastern province from them. This was stated by the leader of the LTTE's political wing, S.P. Thamilchelvan, in a statement to Associated Press on July 12, 2007.
The Northern Theatre of Eelam War IV refers to the fighting that took place in the northern province of Sri Lanka between July 2006 and May 18, 2009.
The 2008–2009 SLA Northern offensive was an armed conflict in the northern Province of Sri Lanka between the military of Sri Lanka and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The battle began with a Sri Lanka Army (SLA) offensive attempting to break through the LTTE defence lines in the north of the island, aiming to conclude the country's 25-year-old civil war by military victory.
Shanmuganathan Ravishankar was a leading member of the TOSIS, the intelligence wing of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a separatist Tamil militant organisation in Sri Lanka.
The following lists notable events that took place during 2009 in Sri Lanka.
The Battle of Mullaitivu was a land battle fought between the Sri Lankan Military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for the control of the town of Mullaitivu in the Northern Theatre of Eelam War IV during the Sri Lankan civil war. The town of Mullaitivu was the last stronghold of the LTTE. The government declared on 25 January 2009 that its troops had entered the town and were consolidating their positions.
The Sri Lanka Armed Forces is the overall unified military of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka encompassing the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy, and the Sri Lanka Air Force; they are governed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The three services have around 346,700 active personnel; conscription has never been imposed in Sri Lanka. As of 2021 it is the 14th largest military in the world, with 1.46% of the Sri Lankan population actively serving.
Divisions of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam refers to the military, intelligence and overseas divisions the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Most of these divisions were destroyed during the Eelam War IV, and only parts of the intelligence and financing divisions remain overseas.
Iranamadu Airport is an air force station and domestic airport in Iranamadu in northern Sri Lanka. Located approximately 9.5 km (5.9 mi) south east of the town of Kilinochchi, the airport is also known as Kilinochchi Airport and SLAF Iranamadu. Originally built by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in 2003, it was captured by the Sri Lankan military in 2009 and taken over by the Sri Lanka Air Force.
↑ "Water war". B. Muralidhar Reddy. The Hindu. August 12, 2006. Archived from the original on February 1, 2008.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
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Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam 
