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UN chief in S Lanka civilian plea
[BBC] Visiting top UN humanitarian official John Holmes has urged Sri Lanka’s army and the Tamil Tigers to do everything possible to avoid civilian casualties. The government says the Tigers are using human shields, but the rebels say civilians are seeking their protection. This is Mr Holmes’s first visit since 2007 when his comment that…
Read MoreTamil killed himself ‘to guide others to liberation’
[Guardian.co.uk] His life had taken him from the northern tip of Sri Lanka to a pebble-dashed semi in north-west London and finally to a cold square in Geneva. But it is for his death that the 26-year-old Tamil, Murugathasan Varnakulasingham, is likely to be remembered. A little after eight o’clock last Thursday night, the computing…
Read MoreSri Lankans in ‘Safe Zone’ Still Under Fire
[OneWorld.net] In a designated safe zone in northern Sri Lanka, weekend fighting has put civilians back in the war zone. A new “safe zone” has provided some respite for tens of thousands of local residents, reports the United Nations, but that area also experienced some fighting in the past several days. “The Sri Lankan government…
Read More38 civilians killed in Sri Lankan war
[CBC News] At least 38 civilians have been killed and 140 others wounded in government artillery attacks and air raids on a tiny rebel-controlled territory in Sri Lanka, a health official says. The attack was carried out in an area that included a government designated “no-fire zone,” said Dr. Thurairaja Varatharaja, who works in the…
Read MoreUN Envoy On Humanitarian Affairs To Arrive In Sri Lanka
[AFP] The U.N.’s top envoy for humanitarian affairs John Holmes will arrive in Colombo on Thursday to assess Sri Lanka’s relief operations in its conflict zone, the government said. The visit comes after U.N.-appointed experts expressed concern earlier this month over “rapidly deteriorating conditions” facing civilians affected by the war between government troops and Tamil…
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