Colombo - Tamil rebels Tuesday accused Sri Lankan government troops of breaking assurances the army would refrain from using heavy weaponry while an estimated 50,000 civilians remain trapped in the last area held by the rebels.
Both the military and Tamil rebels confirmed that fighting was continuing around the Mullaivikkal area, 390 kilometres north of Colombo, in a narrow coastal strip of about 6 square kilometers in the Mullaitivu district.
Rajkot, Apr 27: Congress spokesman and Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma on Monday reiterated the need for equal rights for Sri Lankan Tamils, saying that they should be helped with a healing touch from a humanitarian angle.
“There is humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka. It is a worrisome issue about Sri Lankan Tamil citizens. India has clearly said one thing that Tamilians living there ought to get full and equal rights,” Anand Sharma said.
New Delhi - India on Monday welcomed Sri Lankan government's announcement that it would stop using heavy weapons because combat operations in northern parts of the island nation had reached a conclusion, news reports said. "It means cessation of hostilities. It means to the government of India that the Sri Lankan government has put an end to the ongoing offensive," India's Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram was quoted as saying by the PTI news agency as saying.
Colombo – Amid growing international pressure for a ceasefire against Tamil rebels in north-eastern Sri Lanka, the government Monday ordered the army to stop using heavy weapons to avoid civilian casualties. "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy caliber guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian causalities," a statement from the president's office said.
It said the decision was made as the "combat operations have reached their conclusion."
Colombo– Amid growing international pressure for a ceasefire against Tamil rebels in north-eastern Sri Lanka, the government Monday ordered the army to stop using heavy weapons to avoid civilian casualties. "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy caliber guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian causalities," a statement from the president's office said.
It said the decision was made as the "combat operations have reached their conclusion."
Colombo/Chennai, Apr. 27 : The Sri Lanka Government has announced a temporary cease-fire to allow for the evacuation of nearly 20,000 Lankan Tamil civilians from a no-fire zone deep in rebel LTTE territory.
Sources in Colombo said that there would be no use of aerial weaponry or artillery while the temporary cease-fire is on, and added that this was being done to enable humanitarian organizations to pursue their rescue efforts and evacuate refugees.
Colombo - Tamil rebels Tuesday accused Sri Lankan government troops of breaking assurances the army would refrain from using heavy weaponry while an estimated 50,000 civilians remain trapped in the last area held by the rebels.
Rajkot, Apr 27: Congress spokesman and Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma on Monday reiterated the need for equal rights for Sri Lankan Tamils, saying that they should be helped with a healing touch from a humanitarian angle.
New Delhi - India on Monday welcomed Sri Lankan government's announcement that it would stop using heavy weapons because combat operations in northern parts of the island nation had reached a conclusion, news reports said. "It means cessation of hostilities. It means to the government of India that the Sri Lankan government has put an end to the ongoing offensive," India's Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram was quoted as saying by the PTI news agency as saying.
Colombo – Amid growing international pressure for a ceasefire against Tamil rebels in north-eastern Sri Lanka, the government Monday ordered the army to stop using heavy weapons to avoid civilian casualties. "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy caliber guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian causalities," a statement from the president's office said.
Colombo– Amid growing international pressure for a ceasefire against Tamil rebels in north-eastern Sri Lanka, the government Monday ordered the army to stop using heavy weapons to avoid civilian casualties. "Our security forces have been instructed to end the use of heavy caliber guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which could cause civilian causalities," a statement from the president's office said.
Colombo/Chennai, Apr. 27 : The Sri Lanka Government has announced a temporary cease-fire to allow for the evacuation of nearly 20,000 Lankan Tamil civilians from a no-fire zone deep in rebel LTTE territory.
