SRI LANKA: GOVERNMENT OFFENSIVE IN SOUTHERN MANNAR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001207

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS
MCC FOR D NASSIRY AND E BURKE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/04/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MOPS CE
SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: GOVERNMENT OFFENSIVE IN SOUTHERN MANNAR
DISPLACES THOUSANDS


Classified By: Ambassador Robert O Blake, for reasons 1.4(b,d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Sri Lankan Army (SLA) began a military
offensive on August 27 to clear Silavaturai and neighboring
villages in southwestern Mannar district of Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres. About four thousand civilians
are reportedly displaced by the fighting. UN interlocutors
report that the ICRC and other humanitarian agencies have
ample capacity in the area to handle the situation. On
Monday, September 3, the ICRC turned over to the SLA 12
bodies of civilians, including six women and three children,
killed in a claymore mine explosion inside Tiger-controlled
territory. Both sides allege that the other is responsible
for the attack. Some media outlets are laying the blame on
the military, which allegedly attacked a van because it did
not have a license plate. On September 3, the ICRC announced
that it will close the Uylankulam checkpoint, one of two
official points-of-entry into the Tiger-controlled Vanni,
because it is no longer able to guarantee the safety of its
employees working there. END SUMMARY.

CUTTING OFF THE SUPPLY LINES
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2. (C) The Sri Lanka Army is continuing an offensive it
began on August 27 to take control of portions of the western
coast just south of the Mannar peninsula. Although the area
south of the Mannar-Vavuniya road is considered SLA
territory, pockets of LTTE cadres have long held portions of
the area. Embassy interlocutors speculate that the LTTE uses
sea bases, including the base at Silavaturai captured on
September 2, to smuggle supplies and weapons into the Vanni
from southern India. The military reported that it captured
three boats at the Silavaturai base. Operations in the area
are continuing, with the SLA and LTTE trading mortar fire.
The number of casualties on both sides is not known. The ICRC
delivered the body of at least one slain SLA soldier to the
military on September 1.

THOUSAND OF IDPs FLEE FIGHTING
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3. (C) The Daily Mirror reported that more than 4,000
people were displaced from Musoli, Arippu, Silavaturai,
Saveriapuram and Kokkupadayan "as a result of the latest
military advance in the North," with IDPs fleeing to
SLA-controlled villages in Mannar such as Nanattan and
Vankalai. Tamil newspaper Virakesari and the Consortium of
Humanitarian Agencies (CHA) estimate that approximately 6,500
IDPs have been displaced as a result of the fighting.
Embassy interlocutors in the area believe that the lower
estimate is more accurate. The discrepancy may lie in
different methods of counting IDPs, however. Some media
sources appear to count only those relying on assistance from
external sources like the ICRC, while CHA and Virakesari
apparently also count those displaced but staying with
relatives. According to Office of Foreign Disaster
Assistance (OFDA) Sri Lanka representative Doug Mercado, the
ICRC is managing the situation well, and has more than
adequate resources. Mercado reported that some of the
displaced are already starting to return home. The remaining
IDPs are being housed in schools.

TWELVE CIVILIANS KILLED IN CLAYMORE EXPLOSION
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4. (SBU) On September 2, a claymore mine hit a van traveling
from Silavaturai to Arippu carrying 12 civilians, including
six women and three children, killing all twelve. Both the
SLA and the Tigers denied responsibility and accused the
other of the attack. Some media outlets and the Citizens'

COLOMBO 00001207 002 OF 002


Committee of Mannar alleged that SLA Deep Penetration Units
targeted the van when they saw that it did not have a license
plate. The bodies of the 12 victims were delivered by the
ICRC to the Army on September 3.

ICRC CLOSES UYLANKULAM CHECKPOINT
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5. (C) On September 4 the ICRC announced that it is closing
the Uylankulam checkpoint (near Mannar),one of two official
passage points into the LTTE-controlled Vanni. Fighting in
the area has been intense. Embassy interlocutors told us
that the ICRC decided to close the checkpoint when their
employees came under fire. Publicly, ICRC spokesman Davide
Vignati cited generic concerns for employees' safety,
stating: "We can't provide security for our staff as the
fighting is escalating." Closure of the Uylankulam
checkpoint leaves the Omanthai checkpoint as the only
crossing point to and from the Vanni.


6. (C) COMMENT: The SLA offensive in Silavaturai is taking
place in what was nominally a government-controlled area,
well south of the Vavuniya-Mannar highway. It does not
appear to be part of the larger military offensive to capture
the Vanni that Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa
threatened, but rather an effort to shut down LTTE supply
lines. The military action is having a significant impact on
civilian life in the area, but the affected population
appears to be relatively small. While our current assessment
is that the ICRC is handling the situation capably, continued
escalation of hostilities could affect the ICRC's ability to
respond to the IDPs' needs. Embassy will monitor the
situation and report on any significant increase in military
activity or the numbers displaced.
BLAKE