Disarm paramilitary groups operating in the northeast says US

Jan. 23 (LBO) – The United States Monday asked the government to disarm paramilitary groups operating in the northeast as an escalation of violence left three soldiers dead.









Jan. 23 (LBO) – The United States Monday asked the government to disarm paramilitary groups operating in the northeast as an escalation of violence left three soldiers dead. A bomb went off as troops were sweeping a main highway for mines in the Batticaloa district, military officials told AFP.

The latest incident, blamed on the Tamil Tiger rebels, overshadowed the visits of U.

S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns and Nordic special peace envoy Erik Solheim to use diplomatic muscle to shore up the ceasefire agreement.

"My visit together with Solheim's is focused on getting diplomatic efforts to reinforce the ceasefire agreement," Burns told reporters in Colombo.

He said this morning's bomb attack was 'reprehensible' and blamed the rebels for the deaths.

"The major part of the burden of peace rests with the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam)..the Tamil people have genuine grievances and these should be resolved through dialogue not violence," Burns said.