Politics

Sri Lanka defence secretary escapes assassination bid

December 31, (LBO) - Sri Lanka's defence secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapakse, the brother of the country's president had escaped a suicide assassination attempt, …

Sri Lanka defence secretary survive suicide blast

COLOMBO, Dec 1, 2006 (AFP) - The brother of Sri Lanka's president narrowly escaped Friday when a suspected Tamil rebel suicide bomber blew himself up in the …

Five killed in Sri Lanka as train hits truck

Nov 30, 2006 (AFP) - Two soldiers and three policemen were killed Thursday when their pick-up truck was hit by a commuter train at an unprotected level …

Sri Lanka bloodshed to worsen, warns Crisis Group

Nov 30, 2006 (AFP) - Sri Lanka's peace initiative was flawed from the start and the island now faces an immediate prospect of more violence, the International …

Norway’s peace envoy to meet warring parties in Sri Lanka

Nov 30, 2006 (AFP) - A top Norwegian peace broker arrived in Sri Lanka Thursday, a diplomat said, as Tamil Tiger separatists insisted government forces have …

Independence-seeking Tigers already run shadow state

Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) - The Tamil Tigers have renewed a campaign to partition Sri Lanka, but the guerrillas already have a surreal separate "state" of their own. …

Food aid reaches besieged Sri Lanka town amid lull in fighting

Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) - A convoy of food on Wednesday reached 40,000 people trapped by weeks of heavy fighting in the island's restive east as artillery exchanges …

Tamil Tigers isolated in bid for own state in Sri Lanka

Nov 29, 2006 (AFP) - A rebel bid for an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka has run into outright international rejection with the United States leading calls …

Tigers step up artillery barrage after call for separate state

Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - Tamil Tiger rebels stepped up artillery and mortar bomb attacks against military bases in the restive east Tuesday, a day after calling …

Sri Lanka president calls for talks to avert all-out civil war

Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - Sri Lanka Tuesday offered fresh talks with Tamil Tigers to avert a return to all-out civil war as the top guerrilla leader wrote off the …

Rights group accuses Sri Lanka over child soldiers

Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - Sri Lanka must stop helping a pro-government Tamil rebel faction to recruit child soldiers, a human rights group warned Tuesday. online …

Sri Lanka PM says peace talks will go on with rebels

HANOI, Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - Sri Lanka's prime minister Tuesday said peace talks with Tamil Tigers will go on and urged the guerrillas to stop "terrorism" a day …

Sri Lanka rebels’ bid for own state sets stage for war: analysts

Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - A solemn vow by the veteran Tamil rebel leader that his people will now pursue their own independent state has set the stage for a return …

Norway promises engagement, no new initiative for Sri Lanka

OSLO, Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - Norway on Tuesday said that while it did not see the need for new initiatives, it would remain in contact with both the Sri Lankan …

Sri Lanka asks broker Norway if peace process still on

Nov 28, 2006 (AFP) - The Sri Lankan government has written to peace broker Norway to ask if the island's peace process is over after Tamil rebels declared it …

Sri Lanka navy sinks ‘Tiger’ trawler

Nov 27, 2006 (AFP) - Sri Lanka's navy Monday sank a suspected Tamil rebel trawler off the island's northwest coast, killing at least four people on board, a …

Three cement company workers shot dead

Nov 27, 2006 (AFP) - Unidentified gunmen shot dead three local employees of a Japanese cement company in north-eastern Sri Lanka on Monday as Tamil Tiger …

Tamil Tiger supremo faces war or peace deadline in Sri Lanka

Nov 27, 2006 (AFP) - Tamil Tiger supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran was to deliver a keenly-awaited address Monday to Sri Lanka's embattled Tamil people that will …

Sri Lanka ceasefire effectively over?

Nov 27, 2006 (AFP) - The Tamil minority of Sri Lanka must have their own independent state, rebel chief Velupillai Prabhakaran declared Monday, effectively …

Tiger leader faces deadline for war or peace in Sri Lanka

COLOMBO, Nov 26 (AFP) - Sri Lanka's elusive Tamil Tiger supremo marks his 52nd birthday Sunday with a self-imposed deadline to decide the course of Asia's …