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“Panic in LTTE over arms deal with Slovakia”

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s military on Wednesday claimed that at least 38 LTTE cadres and four soldiers were killed in fighting in the north while the Air Force said its jets bombed Tiger positions in the Muhamalai sector of Jaffna district.

According to a Defence Ministry statement, “counter-terrorist offensives” in the Jaffna and Wanni theatres killed 12 LTTE cadres and inured 8 others.

On the Vavuniya front, troops engaged a terrorist bunker in the Navatkulama area with small arms and rocket propeller grenades (RPGs) last forenoon and claimed that two terrorists were killed, it said.

In another development, the government has claimed that there is “absolute panic” in LTTE circles over the “recent arms deal” with Slovakia.

An Information Department report claimed that members of the Britain-based LTTE front organisation — British Tamil Forum (BTF) — protested in front of the Slovakian Embassy in London opposing the deal.

“A letter was handed over to Slovakian Diplomatic staff by Mr. Ivan Pedropillai a senior figure within the LTTE hierarchy in the United Kingdom and one of the LTTE’s main fundraisers who has generously funded most of the meetings organised by the BTF,” it said quoting unidentified sources.

The report claimed that the demonstration itself is reported to have been a failure compared to previous such protest events.

“Meanwhile, political analysts expressed concerns regarding British authorities permitting such a demonstration in the first place,” it said.

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