KOTHALAMADU, VERUGAL, KATHIRAVELI AND A15 HIGHWAY BETWEEN TRINCOMALEE AND BATTICALOA CAPTURED BY SRI LANKA ARMY

By Walter Jayawardhana

Sri lankan Army troops marching North bagged its next victory after Vakarai by capturing Kothalamadu, Verugal, Kadiraveli and the vital Batticaloa Trincomalee Road, along the Eastern coastline the Army said.

Now the guerillas of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam( LTTE) are desperately fleeing into the jungles West of Kathirveli and Mavil Aru jungles where they started this war many months ago by closing down an irrigation channel that blocked water starving nearly 20,000 rice farmers.
The Sri Lankan army sources said they overheard desperate pleas of the fleeing terrorists over radio asking for help from their military superiors and being refused.

The military said, “ LTTE leader for Vakarai, Nagesh has been over heard requesting assistance form Batticaloa LTTE leader Jeyam via radio communication. Jeyam form his safe heaven- "Berute" camp in the Thoppigala jungle has been heard refusing Nagesh's request and ordering him to withdrew "wherever he likes" except towards Thoppigala.”

Thoppigala is in the adjacent jungles of the Ampara District, where one of the few jungle patches of power exists for the LTTE in the besieged Eastern Province. Many of them have been overrun by the country’s elite commandos of the police Special Task Force (STF).

Kadiravel and Kothalamadu, the LTTE established their strongholds after the Vakarai fell are located about 11 kilometers North of their fallen stronghold.

The A15 highway starting from Trincomalee to Batticaloa is completely cleared of the LTTE terrorists , the Army said.

The defeated guerillas before fleeing to the jungles set fire to all their vehicles according to the Army sources.

Kadiravel and Kothalamadu were taken after a pitched battles with the terrorists. Information reaching Colombo said that the Police commandos and army troops have linked up their advancing forces at Kathirveli now.

The Sri Lanka Army said, “With their latest victory SL security forces have gained the total control over the coastal belt stretching from Sampur to South. This includes former un-liberated areas of Upparu, Ilankanthai, Ichchalanpaththu, Verugal, Kathiraveli, Vakarai, and Panichchankerni.”

They said that Sri Lanka Armed forces launched a defensive operation early this month to liberate the LTTE held areas in Vakarai since the terrorist outfit had been continuously attacking at the security forces and the civilian settlements at Kaju Watta, Mankerni, Mahindapura, Kallar, and Somapura areas since September, 2005. Except for few jungle patches Army Commander Lt. General Sarath Fonseka’s strong ambition of ridding Eastern Province of Tamil Tigers has been now fulfilled.