Friday, January 9, 2009

Sri Lanka War News Updates -- January 9, 2009

LTTE Guerillas (Photo from The Economist)

Sri Lanka Says It Captured Key Rebel Base -- Yahoo News/AP

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Sri Lankan forces captured the strategic Elephant Pass base from the Tamil Tigers on Friday, ousting the rebels from their last stronghold on the Jaffna peninsula and boxing them into a shrinking pocket of land in the northeast.

In a nationally televised address, President Mahinda Rajapaksa praised the victory.

"Our soldiers by this evening have been able to totally liberate Elephant Pass from the clutches of the" rebels, he said.

The capture of the base gives the government nearly full control of the northern peninsula, the Tamil's cultural capital, for the first time since 2000. It also puts the country's major north-south highway completely under its control for the first time in 23 years.

Read more ....

More News On Sri Lanka's War

Sri Lankan troops in heavy clashes with rebels
-- CNN
Sri Lanka troops inside key Elephant Pass - govt -- Reuters
Army 'takes key Sri Lanka pass' -- BBC
Sri Lanka troops seize strategic pass from Tigers: official -- AFP
Sri Lankan Military Presses Ahead with Offensive -- Voice of America
Sri Lankan Army 'Takes More Tiger Territory' -- BBC News
Gauging Sri Lanka's Inroads in Battle Against Tigers -- CS Monitor
Sri Lanka government under fire over editor's murder -- Yahoo News/AFP
Top Sri Lankan Editor Shot Dead -- BBC News
Amnesty International Calls for Investigation into Sri Lankan Newspaper Editor's Shooting Death -- Amnesty International
Sri Lanka: In Victory, Disgrace -- Daily Telegraph editorial
Is Sri Lanka’s long civil war nearing an end? -- Reuters
The Tigers' last stand -- The Economist

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