Major Incidents of Terrorism-related Violence in Sri Lanka, 2003-2005

2005

December 27: Eleven soldiers are killed and four others injured when LTTE cadres triggered a remote controlled claymore mine explosion targeting an army truck in the Puloly west area of Jaffna district.

December 6: Six SF personnel are killed and one sustains injuries in a claymore mine explosion in the Irupalai area of Jaffna district.

December 5: Four cadres of the ‘Colonel’ Karuna faction, including a senior commander, identified as Iniyabarathy alias Barathy, are killed by the LTTE in the Siyambalanduwa area of Amparai district.

December 4: Six soldiers are killed and four persons, including a soldier, sustained injuries when two claymore mines were detonated by the LTTE at Kondavil on the Jaffna-Palaly main road.

At least six civilians are killed and two others sustain injuries in clashes between Muslims and Tamils in the Muttur area of Trincomalee since December 3.

November 18: Six civilians are killed and 21 others, including a child, sustain injuries when LTTE cadres lobbed hand grenades targeting a mosque in the Akkaraipattu area of Amparai district.

November 14: Cadres of the ‘Colonel’ Karuna faction abduct and subsequently kill two top LTTE leaders, including Amparai district ‘military commander’ Suresh, in the Akkaraipattu area.

November 11: Two civilians, Mohammed Munas and Athambava Mohammed Lebbe, are killed and four others sustain injuries when a claymore mine exploded at Kirimichchai in the Vaharai area of Batticaloa district.

October 7: Two civilians, Selvarajah Selvakumar and Arumugam Paramanathan, are shot dead and eight others sustained injuries when unidentified assailants opened fire and simultaneously lob a grenade in the Valaichenai area of Batticaloa district.

September 8: LTTE cadres lob a hand grenade and subsequently opened fire targeting the security forces, killing two police personnel and injuring six others in the Kattankudy area of Batticaloa district.

September 6: Three LTTE cadres are allegedly killed and five others wounded by the Karuna faction in an attack at the outfit's camp at Kattumurivu in the Vakarai area of Batticaloa district.

August 12: Sri Lanka’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, is shot dead by an unidentified gunman near his private residence on Bullers Lane in the heart of the capital Colombo.

LTTE 'pistol gang' cadres kill two civilians, Sinnadorai Selvarajah and his wife Welangee Selvarajah, inside their business centre at Wellawatta. While Sinnadorai was a strong supporter of the People’s Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam, his wife Welangee was an ex-announcer at the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Cooperation and Sri Lanka Rupavahini Cooperation.

July 14: Three civilians are killed by suspected LTTE cadres at Akkaraipattu in the Amparai district.

July 13: Nine civilians are injured when a suspected LTTE cadre threw a hand grenade at a Tsunami relief centre situated in the Muttur area of Trincomalee district.

In another grenade attack by the LTTE, 10 Army personnel, including one officer, attached to the Pansalwatte detachment are injured in Trincomalee district.

July 12: Thirteen police personnel are injured at Uppuveli in the Trincomalee district in a grenade attack carried out by suspected LTTE cadres.

July 10: Four LTTE cadres, including two senior leaders identified as Dikkan and Sinnavan, are killed by the rival 'colonel' Karuna group at the Selvanayagapuram Agriculture Training Institute in Trincomalee district.

June 30: Three soldiers are shot dead at Urani in the Batticaloa district by the LTTE.

May 31: The LTTE shot dead a Commanding Officer of the Army Intelligence Unit, Major Nizam Mutalif, at Polhengoda in the capital Colombo.

April 21: Five LTTE cadres are killed and seven others wounded in a pre-dawn attack by the 'Colonel' Karuna faction at Kanjikudichcha Aaru in the Amparai district, about 250 kilometers east of the capital Colombo

April 15: Divisional Secretary for Thirukkovil, A. K Thavarajah, is shot dead by an unidentified gunman in Thirukovil.

April 14: Five cadres of a 'paramilitary group' are killed during an attack on their camp by suspected LTTE cadres at Sorivil in the Welikanda area of Polannaruwa district, 80 kilometers northwest of Batticaloa.

April 4: LTTE's pistol group kills a senior Government functionary, T. Kailanandan, Director of Vocational Training Ministry at the Kattankudy Technical College, in Batticaloa.

March 26: Five LTTE cadres are killed by cadres of the rival 'Colonel' Karuna faction at Tharavai in the Batticaloa district.

March 5: Six civilians are shot dead at Welikanda in the Polonnaruwa district by cadres of the LTTE.

February 7: LTTE’s Eastern Political wing leader, Kaushalyan, his deputy Nedimaran and three other LTTE cadres are killed during an ambush at Poonani in the Batticaloa district. Ariyanayagam Chandra Nehru, ex-Tamil National Alliance Member of Parliament for the Amparai district who got injured succumbs to his injuries in Colombo on February 8.

2004

December 11: At least two persons are killed and 15 others sustain injuries during a bomb blast at the end of a concert by Shahrukh Khan, an Indian film actor, in the capital Colombo.

September 29: Five LTTE cadres and a civilian are killed in clashes between warring factions of the outfit in the Batticaloa district.

July 25: Seven suspected cadres of the LTTE faction led by 'Colonel' Karuna and a civilian are shot dead at a house in Kottawa near the Sri Lankan capital Colombo.

July 7: A suspected woman LTTE suicide bomber blows herself up at the Kollupitiya Police station next to the Sri Lankan Prime Minister's official residence in Colombo killing herself and four police personnel and injuring nine persons.

May 31: A senior journalist, G. Nadeshan, is shot dead by suspected LTTE cadres at Manmunai junction in the Batticaloa district.

April 9: At least 22 people are reported killed as heavy fighting erupted between the LTTE factions of Velupillai Prabhakaran and Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan alias 'Colonel' Karuna near the Verugal River, 78 Kilometers from Batticaloa.

January 9: Three people are killed and 38 others sustain injuries when a hand grenade allegedly lobbed by two LTTE cadres exploded at a funeral house in the LTTE-held Vakaneri area of Batticaloa district.

2003

November 26: Three Muslims are killed and six others injured in a grenade attack by the LTTE in the Trincomalee and Kinniya area.

March 20: Suspected Sea Tiger cadres of the LTTE sink a Chinese fishing trawler, 33km northwest of Mullaithivu. While 16 fishermen are reported missing, 16 more are rescued.

February 8: In a serious violation of truce terms, three Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) cadres blow themselves up in a boat carrying arms and ammunition off Delft island.