SRI LANKA: HEAVY FIGHTING AT FORWARD DEFENSE LINE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001483 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/10/2016 TAGS: PREL PTER PHUM PREF MOPS CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: HEAVY FIGHTING AT FORWARD DEFENSE LINE AS GSL SHIPS CIVILIANS OUT OF JAFFNA REF: A. COLOMBO 1456 ¶B. COLOMBO 1439 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: CDA James R. Moore for reasons 1.4(b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: In fighting that began September 9, Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) forces have pushed at least one kilometer into the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) side of the Forward Defense Line (FDL) at Muhamalai on the Jaffna Peninsula. Military sources indicate to us that the campaign may continue southward until security forces reach Pallai, where they hope to disarm heavy LTTE artillery. Meanwhile, the GSL moved supplies into and civilians out of Jaffna. Eleven thousand displaced Muslims were returned to the eastern town of Muttur by GSL buses. End Summary. Security Forces Push Forward Defense Line -------------- ¶2. (C) Government-owned and independent media widely reported September 10-11 that beginning September 9, Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) forces at Muhamalai pushed up to one kilometer into the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) side of the Forward Defense Line (FDL) on the Jaffna Peninsula. Military spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe indicated to pol FSN on September 11 that 33 soldiers were killed "largely due to LTTE booby trapping and landmines." Samarasinghe estimated that 150 LTTE cadres were killed in the battle that continued this morning, September 11. Pro-LTTE Tamilnet also confirmed that GSL security forces had gained ground at Muhamalai. On September 10, an LTTE claymore bomb exploded near a Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camp in the northern town of Vavuniya, killing three. A second claymore exploded that evening at Ganemulla Commando Camp, with no injuries reported. ¶3. (C) Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Captain Tushara (protect source) told poloff on September 11 that the SLA's September 9 push on the LTTE side of the Forward Defense Line (FDL) at Muhamalai was based on the "imminent threat" of LTTE heavy artillery to Palali Air Force Base and civil airport in the northern Jaffna Peninsula, which the LTTE began firing towards last month. Tushara added that security forces "might push forward to (Tiger-controlled) Pallai," from where the military could disarm the LTTE's 130 mm artillery guns thought to be located there and on the Pooneryn peninsula to the west. ¶4. (C) Meanwhile, the independently-appointed Human Rights Commission (HRC) of Sri Lanka reported it has received 419 complaints on disappearances in Jaffna since December 2005. Of those, Commissioner Dharmasiri Jayawickrama told the BBC on September 10 that police and security forces are accused of 83 disappearances while "militant groups" are suspected in 183 cases. There are no suspects in the remaining cases. Jayawickrama said the HRC would investigate reports of 30 disappearances in Colombo as well. GSL Moves Civilians Out of Jaffna -------------- ¶5. (C) In an initiative that government-owned media claimed the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) undertook in response to the "failure" of the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) to secure a passenger/supply chain to Jaffna, the SLN delivered a shipload of foodstuffs to the peninsula on September 8. The ship returned to the eastern Trincomalee harbor with 975 civilians who had been stranded in Jaffna, "mostly residents of Colombo and Kandy who were Sri Lankans holding foreign passports," according to Navy Commander K.P. Dessanayake. During the sail from Jaffna to Trincomalee, several fast attack boats accompanied the passenger ship. The LTTE has not given its approval for an ICRC supply and passenger sea chain, demanding instead a humanitarian corridor using the A-9 highway, which has been closed since August 11. COLOMBO 00001483 002 OF 002 Internally Displaced Muslims Return to Muttur -------------- ¶6. (C) Government-owned and independent press reported September 10 that GSL-facilitated buses had returned at least 11,000 displaced Muslim civilians to Muttur, south of the Trincomalee harbor. Fighting between GSL forces and the LTTE, which began in late July, displaced more than 30,000 civilians from the area, according to UNHCR figures of September 4 (reftels). Divisional Secretary M. Sheriff told the press that more than 20,000 civilians remain in refugee camps in Kantale, Trincomalee district, which have been heavily flooded by monsoon rains. A UNHCR representative told USAID officer on September 8 that some civilians felt compelled by the GSL to return to Muttur although they did not yet feel safe returning. Comment -------------- ¶7. (C) Comment: Following a victory in Sampur, the GSL seems determined to push forward against LTTE guns at the FDL on Jaffna peninsula. Even the LTTE, through its propaganda machine Tamilnet, has admitted that GSL forces presently have the upper hand. It is possible that LTTE losses in the north and east could lead the Tigers to retaliate against soft targets in Colombo. Meanwhile, the GSL has taken humanitarian issues into its own hands, providing a supply and passenger chain between Trincomalee and Jaffna and busing IDPs back to Muttur. End Comment. MOORE