SRI LANKAN NAVY CRAFT SUNK IN NORTHEAST; CONTINUED

UNCLAS COLOMBO 000297 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV MOPS PTER PHUM CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKAN NAVY CRAFT SUNK IN NORTHEAST; CONTINUED FIGHTING IN MANNAR ¶1. (U) On March 22, a Sri Lankan Navy "Dvora" fast attack craft was sunk around 2:00 am while on patrol near Nayaru, south of Mullaitivu, the Defense Ministry said. Ten of 16 crew members were missing. Pro-Tamil Tiger sources claimed that suicide Sea Tiger crafts destroyed the Navy boat after a 45-minute firefight, and that three rebels and 14 sailors were killed. The Defence Ministry, however, said the Navy boat probably struck a sea mine, and ruled out a Sea Tiger attack. Later that afternoon, Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF) jets bombed LTTE bases in the Nayaru area. The Navy craft was the second sunk by rebels since the GSL's withdrawal from the Ceasefire Agreement in January. ¶2. (SBU) On March 21, two soldiers were killed and six injured in an LTTE landmine explosion in Mannar district. The SLAF subsequently carried out raids on Sea Tiger radar and command positions near Nayaru and Puthukudyiruppu. Some observers speculate that these attacks may have motivated the Sea Tigers to target the Navy patrol boat. ¶3. (U) Separately, the military said that on March 22 its forces in Mannar district had overrun LTTE positions near Parayanakulam, taking control of a strategically important one square kilometer area. Government sources claim as many as 100 LTTE cadres and five soldiers were killed in weekend fighting in Mannar, Vavuniya and Weli Oya. Pro-LTTE websites claim the Tigers killed 55 government troops and wounded another 120. Heavy rains and floodwaters have impeded the SLA's progress in the North, hampering their use of armored vehicles and helicopter gunships. Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanyakkara said that flooding had caused supply bottlenecks. BLAKE