The Hindu : Front Page : Troops advance into NFZ

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Wednesday, Apr 29, 2009
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Troops advance into NFZ

B. Muralidhar Reddy

Colombo advises Swedish Foreign Minister to defer his proposed visit to May

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan troops on Tuesday reported further advance into the approximately eight square kilometre no-fire zone (NFZ), where the remaining cadres and leaders of the LTTE, including its chief Velupillai Prabakaran, are keeping an estimated 20,000 civilians as human shields.

The slow but steady march of the security forces continued even as Foreign Ministers of France and United Kingdom, Bernard Kouchner and David Miliband, are scheduled to arrive here on Wednesday for discussions with the Sri Lankan authorities on the plight of the internally displaced and those trapped in the NFZ.

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt wanted to join his British and French counterparts on their visit for a first hand assessment of the humanitarian crisis but Colombo has advised the Swedish Minister to defer his travel to May.

Reports from Stockholm suggested that the Sri Lankan mission there turned down a request from the Swedish government to allow its Foreign Minister to visit Colombo along with his British and French counterparts as part of the European Union (EU) delegation. He was asked to consider postponing his visit to May.

Unhappy over the refusal of Sri Lanka to entertain a visit by Mr. Bildt, Sweden has recalled its charge d’ affaires in Sri Lanka to Stockholm for consultations.

With the combat operations having concluded, the Mahinda Rajapaksa government is faced with the twin challenge of catering to the needs of over 1.9 lakh civilians who have fled from areas under LTTE control and taken shelter in government camps and rescuing citizens still trapped in the NFZ.

Meanwhile, Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Alok Prasad flew down to Pulmodai in the east where India has established an emergency medical unit including a hospital to provide humanitarian relief and emergency medical care to IDPs from the North.

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