[AP] Cluster bombs struck the last functioning hospital in Sri Lanka’s northern war zone Wednesday, the U.N. said, as the country’s president declared that the military has nearly crushed a 25-year Tamil rebellion for a separate homeland. U.N. spokesman Gordon Weiss said 15 U.N. staffers and 81 family members are trapped in the Puthukkudiyiruppu area, […]
ANC media statement on the crisis in Sri Lanka
[ANC] The African National Congress (ANC) expresses its very serious concern at the unfolding humanitarian crisis that is emerging on the Island of Sri Lanka. The United Nations International Red Cross Committee has reported that over 300 000 civilians of Tamil origin are caught in the crossfire in the war that is currently raging in […]
Natalie Samarasinghe: Rulers in Colombo must reach out to the whole island
[ The Independent ] “People throughout the country are brimming with patriotic fervour,” read the front page of yesterday’s Sri Lanka Daily News. It is unlikely that any of them are located in the Wanni region, where an estimated 250,000 civilians are trapped as the government advances on the Liberation Tigers of Tamileelam (LTTE), otherwise […]
Displaced Priests, Nuns In Battle Zone Appeal To United Nations To Stop The Fighting
[UCAN] Catholic clergy and Religious, fearing a “great human tragedy” in northern Sri Lanka, have asked U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to call on their government to stop the war and put an end to the suffering of civilians. In a letter titled “SOS – Agonizing Cry of the People of Vanni,” Father James Pathinathar […]
War at what Cost?
[CNN] An Excerpt from this Blog entry by M.I.A. on the genocidal conflict going on in Sri Lanka: “Just last month, the New York-based Genocide Prevention Project released a report that listed Sri Lanka among the top eight “red alert” countries currently experiencing genocide conflicts. And Human Rights Watch estimates that between 230,000 to 300,000 […]