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Terrorism-related Incidents in Colombo
2008
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No.
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Date
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Description
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1
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January 1
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The UNP Member of Parliament, T. Maheshwaran,
was shot at and injured by suspected ‘pistol gang’ cadres of the
LTTE while he was offering
prayers inside Sivam Kovil (Temple of Lord Shiva) at Kotahena
in the capital Colombo. The Parliamentarian, however, succumbed
to his injuries. One of the nine more civilians wounded in the
incident also died of his injuries. Meanwhile the Kotahena police
claimed that the suspect, a resident of Gurunagar in Jaffna, was
shot at and injured in retaliatory fire by Maheswaran's security
personnel and is under police custody.
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2
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January 2
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Four persons were killed and over 20 injured
in a powerful bomb blast in Colombo. The Defence Ministry said
the blast which occurred at about 9:30am opposite the Nippon Hotel,
targeted an army bus carrying soldiers.
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3
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January 4
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The death toll in the LTTE claymore attack at
Slave Island in Colombo on January 2 has risen to five with the
death of the Second Lieutenant D.M.S.K. Dissanayake of Sri Lanka
National Guard who was among the critically injured persons.
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4.
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January 8
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Suspected LTTE militants killed the non-Cabinet
Minister for Nation Building, D.M. Dissanayake, in a claymore
mine blast near Rukmani Devi junction at Ja-ela while he was proceeding
towards Colombo to attend the Parliament session. A personal bodyguard
of the Minister, identified as K.P. Rathnayaka, also succumbed
to his injuries in the hospital. 13 people, including seven civilians,
were injured in the incident.
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5.
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January 8
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The SLAF chief, Air Marshal Roshan Goonetilleke,
narrowly escaped being caught in a bomb blast in Colombo. The
SLAF commander had passed by the site of the blast in the Fort
area of central Colombo, just three minutes before a parcel bomb
placed in a roadside public telephone booth went off. Fitted with
a timer, the bomb caused some minor damage to a building nearby.
However, no casualties were reported.
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6.
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January 18
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Troops on a search operation in the Wattala area
of Colombo district recovered one micro pistol, two magazines
with eight live rounds and two hand grenades. The items had been
hidden in an abandoned house at Weliamuna junction on Alakanda
– Wattala road.
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7.
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January 25
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Police detected and chased four suspected persons,
including one woman and three men on two motor bikes, in the middle
of the Japan Lanka Friendship road at Thalangama Police Station
in the Colombo district. Police later recovered a package with
two Kiwi polish tins and a gum bottle filled with 175 grams of
C-4 explosives along with eight inch wire cord detonator cord
left behind by the suspected persons.
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8.
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January 26
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Police recovered two suicide jackets hidden in
the Aduruppu Street in the Grandpass area of Colombo district.
Those suicide jackets were filled with high power C-4 explosives.
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9.
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February 3
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At least 12 persons were killed and around 100
injured, 10 of them critically, when an LTTE female suicide militant
blew herself inside the Colombo Fort Railway Station. The bomber
who apparently arrived at the railway station in a train blew
herself opposite the station cafeteria on platform number three
at 2.10pm. The head of the suicide cadre was lying on the platform
along with a cellular phone connected to a handsfree kit. "They
(LTTE) would have targeted Security Forces personnel who were
returning to their bases after rehearsals at the Galle Face Green,"
an unnamed military official said.
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10.
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February 3
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Earlier in the day, at least seven civilians,
including two children, were injured in a low intensity grenade
explosion inside the Dehiwala Zoological Garden on the outskirts
of Colombo.
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11.
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February 4
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An explosion occurred at Dandeniyawatta in the
Moratuwa area of Colombo District.
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12.
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February 4
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An IED that had been planted at the foot of an
electricity transformer at Wijesiriwardane Mawatha in the Mt Lavinia
went off damaging the transformer.
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13.
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February 5
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LTTE cadres blasted an electricity transformer
in front of the Rajakadaluwa Christian Church in the Arachchikattuwa
area of Chilaw. However, no casualties were reported.
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14.
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February 21
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A naval foot patrol recovered 20-kg of C-4 explosives
packed in 20 packets, containing 1 kg in each packets, 23 detonators
and two belts from Kerawalapitiya along the Colombo-Katunayake
road, unnamed senior Navy official said. He informed the area
is highly sensitive as gas tanks and oil refineries were situated
and added, "A major disaster and mayhem was averted by recovering
the 20kg of C4 explosives."
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15.
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February 27
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The Defence Ministry said that the person arrested
on February 25 in the Pettah area of Colombo district was a number
one LTTE militant allegedly involved in many civilian massacres
carried out by the LTTE in the South. The suspect, identified
as Muththusami Ilankoowan alias Sami, was arrested from a hotel
on Kadireshan Road. The suspect owns a shipping line which he
uses to promote the LTTE’s cross border terrorist activities and
had come to Sri Lanka in 2007 to promote terrorist activities
in the South.
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16.
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February 29
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Seven persons, including three police officers,
were wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up when police
knocked on a house door during an operation targeting LTTE militants
in Colombo. One of the injured police officers died later. One
LTTE suicide jacket, six claymore mines, four hand grenades and
one suicide belt were recovered by the police from Modera area
of Colombo district couple of hours before the blast.
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17.
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March 5
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Medawachchiy police seized a three-wheeler with
three persons and war like items at a snap roadblock near the
Karapikkada junction in the Colombo district.
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18.
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March 10
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One civilian was killed and four others were
injured in an IED explosion in the Wallawatta area on the Colombo-Galle
road.
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19.
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March 25
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Police arrested five LTTE suspects along with
four kilograms of C-4 explosives, 10 electric detonators and four
time devices from a house in the Aluth Mawatha area in Colombo
district.
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20.
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April 8
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The Colombo magistrate has allowed police to
detain a Singapore national suspected of having links with the
LTTE until May 7. The magistrate also ordered the police to produce
the suspect, Muttusamy Ilangovan, believed to be a senior leader
of the LTTE's international naval operations. He is also accused
of staying in Sri Lanka although his visa had expired.
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21
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April 26
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26 civilians, including 17 males
and seven females, were killed and 40 others injured when the
LTTE militants detonated a bomb inside a Ceylon Transport Board
bus parked at the public bus stand in Piliyandala suburb of Colombo,
at around 7:00 pm.
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2007
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No.
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Date
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Description
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1
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January 6, 2007
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Police raided the Colombo office
of the TRO, but finding only a caretaker in the building searched
the premises. The raid follows similar search operations in Trincomalee
and Vavuniya a day earlier.
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2
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February 4, 2007
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Troops recovered a claymore mine
hidden in a three-wheeler by the LTTE which reportedly planned
to attack Colombo on the eve of 59th Independence Day
celebrations.
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3
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February 6, 2007
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A passenger bus, traveling from
Colombo to Batticaloa was waylaid and robbed by LTTE cadres in
the general area of Karuwankerni.
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4
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March 3, 2007
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Police found five bodies in a
marsh at Kandana near Colombo and suspect that they are victims
in a renewed civil war with LTTE.
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5
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April 4, 2007
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The unidentified dead body of
a youth was recovered at Sapuskanda in the Kelaniya area of Colombo
district.
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6
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April 29, 2007
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An LTTE aircraft bombed oil and
gas storage facilities in and around capital Colombo at 1.45 am.
It dropped two bombs at the Muthurajawela gas storage facility
of Shell and two more bombs at the main oil storage depot at Kolonnawa.
The defence ministry said, "The suspected LTTE aircraft have (dropped)
four improvised bombs. One of the two bombs dropped on Muthurajawela
caused minor damage to the fire guard equipment of a private gas
company and the other damaged water supply," adding, the
two bombs dropped on the Kolonnawa, which houses the offices of
the Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminals Limited in which Lanka
IOC, a unit of Indian Oil Corporation, has one-third stake, failed
to explode.
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7
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May 24, 2007
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A suspected LTTE suicide bomber
on an explosive laden motor bicycle rammed a bus carrying army
personnel on the first cross street in capital Colombo at around
9:00 am killing two soldiers and wounding five persons.
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8
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May 28, 2007
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Seven civilians were killed and
42 persons, including 36 civilians and six STF personnel, sustained
injuries in a LTTE-triggered remote-controlled claymore mine explosion
targeting STF vehicle at Belekkade Junction in the Rathmalana
area of Colombo district. The STF vehicle moving towards Colombo
was slightly damaged with its windscreen completely smashed.
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9
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May 29, 2007
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One STF personnel injured in the
LTTE-triggered claymore mine explosion targeting STF vehicle at
Belekkade Junction in the Rathmalana area of Colombo district
succumbed to his injuries, raising the death toll to eight. Meanwhile,
the Media Centre for National Security informed that 21 persons
have been taken into custody under suspicion for the attack and
they are being interrogated.
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10
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June 3, 2007
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Forty-seven people were arrested
in the capital Colombo for suspected LTTE links during a special
24-hour search operation which ended at 6 am local time on June
3. The police feared that LTTE cadres may have infiltrated the
capital among those who have sought temporary accommodation in
the city.
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11
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June 7, 2007
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Police started eviction of Tamils
from the capital Colombo as part of a crackdown against LTTE suspects.
Tamil men, women and children, lodged at low-budget hostels, were
forced out of their rooms, ordered into buses and driven off under
armed escorts, residents said. The move followed an announcement
by the Inspector General of Police Victor Perera last week that
Tamils "loitering" in Colombo were a threat to national security
and that they will be given transport to return to their villages.
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12
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June 8, 2007
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Police recovered a claymore mine,
weighing about 7-kg, laid at the foot of a lamp post near the
Police Quarters in the Maligawatta area of Colombo town.
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13
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June 10, 2007
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Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickramanayaka
disclosed that the LTTE had sent another truck with over 1,000
kilograms of explosives. "We are searching for another lorry,
which can cause a major damage. The explosives in that truck were
enough to blow up half of Colombo," the Prime Minister said
without giving any details.
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14
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June 12, 2007
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Suspected LTTE cadres destroyed
a transformer using explosives in the Orugodawaththa area of Colombo
district.
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15
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June 13, 2007
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A powerful claymore mine, weighing
12-kg, packed in a school bag was found near the Colombo-Matara
railway track in the Wellawatta area of Colombo district. Police
said that the claymore mine was hidden among bushes on the sea
shore near the Nelson Lane off the rail road in Wellawatta.
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16
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June 16, 2007
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Sri Lankan police has intensified
security measures in the capital Colombo. Rohan Abeywardena, Deputy
Inspector General of Police in charge of Colombo security, said
that special plans are underway to check possible infiltration
by the LTTE cadres to carry out attacks in the city, adding, at
least three suspected LTTE cadres had been arrested in the city
since June 14.
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17
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June 27, 2007
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The government defence affairs spokesperson, Keheliya
Rambukwella, said that a number of suspects involved in abduction
for ransom have been arrested during the last week.
A time-bomb was found at Delkanda Market
along a road leading to a conference venue in Maharagama, near
capital Colombo, where President Mahinda Rajapakse was addressing
the 17th General Assembly of the SLFP. Rajapakse reportedly used
a helicopter to come to the convention centre and return to Temple
Trees.
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18
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July 23, 2007
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The MCNS said the intelligence sources had revealed
information that LTTE had dispatched two bomb laden trucks to
the Colombo and suburbs to create sabotage.
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19
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August 15, 2007
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Two claymore mines (weighing about
9-kg and 5-kg), three hand grenades and one detonator were recovered
by the troops from the Ideal Guest Inn at Sinasabha Road in the
Wellawatta area of Colombo district. Deputy Inspector General
of Police Jayantha Wickramaratne said the LTTE may have been using
the guest house as a transit point to transport the claymores
to their intended target.
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20
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August 20, 2007
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A Tamil journalist, Sathyavel
Prabhash, who was abducted in Colombo several months ago was found
in Kandy. The journalist told police that he was abducted by the
LTTE and threatened not to supply pictures to Sinhala newspapers.
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21
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August 22, 2007
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The LTTE demanded a rupee one million ransom
from the owner of the Ideal Guest lodge in Wellawatte as compensation
for the loss of two claymore mines detected at the lodge on a
tip-off by the owner.
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22
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August 23, 2007
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A high security alert for a possible LTTE attack
in an immediate suburb of capital Colombo led to the arrest of
14 suspects. SFs raided Nugegoda, a popular residential suburb
east of Colombo, and arrested 12 Sinhalese and two Tamils. The
search was conducted on information that the LTTE may carry out
a bomb blast in and around Nugegoda.
The Colombo Magistrate ordered the release of
a Tamil Hindu priest accused by the authorities of helping LTTE
cadres. The priest and the trustee of the Hindu temple in the
Kayts island of Jaffna peninsula were arrested by the Sri Lankan
Navy in May 2007 after explosives belonging to the LTTE were found
hidden in the temple premises. They had been detained by the Terrorism
Investigation Division in the capital Colombo since their arrest
resulting in their filing a fundamental rights petition seeking
release.
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23
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September 5, 2007
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Police recovered nine kilograms of explosives
near the railway track at two different locations in the Dehiwela
coastal area of Colombo district, informed Deputy Inspector General
of Police, Jayantha Wickramaratne. Seven-kg of C-4 explosives
concealed in 14 small packets and a mobile phone were recovered
by the Dehiwela police at around 9.40 am, he said. Hours later,
the Dehiwela police also recovered two-kg of C-4 explosives hidden
in a thicket around 100 meters away from the coastal area. "The
high powered explosives were packed in four boxes each weighing
500 g. The police recovered a total of 18 boxes with 500 g C4
explosives in each box," Wickramaratne disclosed.
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25
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September 14, 2007
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Police and security forces launched a cordon
and search operation in the High Security Zone area close to the
oil tanks in Kolonnawa in the outskirts of Colombo and arrested
47 suspects, police sources said. The majority of the arrested
are Indian origin ethnic Tamils from areas such as Vavuniya and
Hatton.
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26
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September 19, 2007
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Sri Lankan police claimed that
they had found a dozen bombs hidden in a building in Colombo and
arrested two people in connection with the incident. "We did a
search operation in Kotahena Jampettah Street Tuesday night and
found the bombs hidden in a building," a police spokesman said.
The police said that LTTE may have transported the bombs to the
capital.
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27
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October 3, 2007
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Troops on foot patrol at the Lake House roundabout
in Colombo found an unattended bag containing explosives and other
accessories from the inside of a shop. The recoveries included
125-gm of explosives, five smoke bombs, one mobile charger, 15-ft
of flexible wire, 2-ft of safety wire, one non electrical detonator,
eight ration packets and one air force camouflage uniform.
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28.
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November 28, 2007
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The EPDP leader and Minister for Social Welfare,
Douglas Devananda, escaped unhurt when a polio affected woman
suicide cadre of the LTTE blew herself up at his office at Isipathana
road in the Narahenpita area of Colombo. While the Minister was
in his office waiting to see members of the public, the woman
was allowed to get into the office complex unchecked considering
her disability but the PRO of the Minister conducted checking
on the physically challenged woman along with others who had come
to see the Minister. However, the disguised LTTE woman cadre blew
herself up when the physical checking was being done by the PRO.
The blast critically injured the PRO, one Ministerial aide and
one officer of Ministerial Security Division, who succumbed to
his injuries later.
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29.
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November 28, 2007
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At least 19 civilians were killed and 35 others
injured as a suspected parcel bomb exploded near a popular fashion
store at Nugegoda junction near Colombo around 5.55 pm. Police
believe that the bomb had been placed in one of the parcel counters
at the No Limit clothing store by a suspected LTTE militant who
had left the incident site.
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31.
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December 3, 2007
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Security forces recovered a bomb from inside
an unattended parcel detected near a telephone post opposite the
house of Tamil National Alliance Jaffna District Parliamentarian
M.K. Shivagilingam at Jawattha around 8:40 am.
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