Lankan troops push further on after capturing LTTE headquarters
January 3rd, 2009 - 7:18 pm ICT by ANI Colombo, Jan. 3 (ANI): A day after capturing the LTTEs administrative headquarters at Kilinochchi, Sri Lankan forces are moving northwards the town of Mullaitivu.
The Sri Lankan defence ministry said that the troops were moving towards Mullaitivu to fight a battle against the rebels and recapture the northern town. LTTE rebels are known to have military facilities in Mullaitivu, the BBC reports.
Earlier, LTTE received a heavy blow on Friday after losing town of Kilinochchi.
Kilinochchi was the de facto capital of the Tamil Tigers, who have been demanding a separate state for the ethnic Tamil minority.
The town had been in the hands of rebels for the last one decade and it took advancement of months for the Sri Lankan army to recapture it.
In his address to the nation to announce the capture, President Rajapaksa said, We should pay the gratitude of the whole nation to those heroic soldiers who achieved that victory.
However, the pro-Tamil website TamilNet said troops had entered a virtual ghost town as the civilian population and rebels shifted further northeast.
Both sides have claimed to inflict heavy casualties on each other in the ongoing operation.
So far, no verification has been made on the exact number of casualties. (ANI)
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- Lanka troops claim capture of part of strategic Elephant Pass - Jan 05, 2009
- Lankan troops capture LTTE's political hub Kilinochchi (Lead) - Jan 02, 2009
- Sri Lankan army captures LTTEs headquarter - Jan 02, 2009
- Suicide bomb kills two near Sri Lankan Air Force headquarter in Colombo - Jan 02, 2009
- Forget the 'unfortunate' past: Rajapaksa tells people of Jaffna - Dec 30, 2008
- LTTE's last stronghold Mullaitivu captured: Lankan army chief (Roundup) - Jan 25, 2009
- Fall of LTTE's political hub of Kilinochchi inevitable: Sri Lanka (Second Lead) - Jan 01, 2009
- LTTE garrison town captured by army: Sri Lanka (Lead) - Jan 01, 2009
- 120 Tigers, 25 soldiers die in Sri Lanka - Dec 16, 2008
- After Kilinochchi, is Rajapaksa awaiting Kalinga? (Comment) - Apr 20, 2009
- Sri Lankan troops capture LTTE airstrip in Mullaitivu - Jan 10, 2009
- Sri Lanka steps up attacks on LTTE after taking rebel headquarters - Jan 03, 2009
- Sri Lankan police send 'mass grave' ashes for forensic testing - Nov 26, 2010
- Sri Lankan Army attack on LTTE will aggravate tensions: Tamil leader - Jan 03, 2009
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