As the ongoing war in
Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Kfir bombers attacked a refugee camp in the Kilinochchi district in the early hours of November 29, killing at least 3 people and wounding another 20.
The bombers deployed Russian made OFAB-500 cluster bombs, eyewitnesses told TamilNet's Vanni correspondent. Cluster bombs release miniature bomblets and are used to spread damage over a wide area.
Many internally displaced persons (IDPs) had sought shelter at the camp bordering Piramanthanaaru and Uzhavaoor (Tharmapuram) in Kilinochchi.
The IDP camp had been constructed and maintained by the TRO and a local NGO called REERDO for families that had been displaced due to the Sri Lankan government’s ongoing military offensive into Vanni.
The settlement was named Tharumapuram Kallaru Ranimayanathan Scheme or Uzhavanoor Kudiyiruppu settlement, the TRO said in its press statement.
The bombardment destroyed more than 29 shelters of IDPs within the 'secure zone' announced by
Medical authorities described the bombardment as "terrible mid-night aerial attack on refugee camp".
IDPs living in the camp blamed the Sri Lankan government for targeting a refugee camp which was located within the 'secure zone' unilaterally announced by it a few weeks ago.
"We had some hope that the Sri Lankan government would not bomb refugee camps within the perimeter of secure zone announced by it," a mother told TamilNet correspondent who visited the site Saturday.
Meanwhile, in
Flooding between 21 and 27 November in the NorthEast of Sri Lanka directly affected over 70,000 of the 300,000 IPDs reported the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO).
The Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi districts were the most severely affected, with the largest numbers of IDPs being ‘redisplaced’ in the Puththukudiyirippu, Marimepattu, and Oddusudan divisions, the TRO said.
Cyclone Nisha resulted in the deaths of 12 people, including 3 children, and injuries to over 300.
5,000 permanent houses and 6,000 temporary shelters were damaged as a result of the flooding caused by the cyclone and 14 IDP settlements and camps were affected, the TRO said.
Meanwhile in
6,689 houses were totally destroyed while 14,820 were partly damaged, according to statistics revealed by the Additional Government Agent (AGA) of
In Ilavaalai, Balakrishnan Visuvalingam, 28, drowned while Arumaithurai Kumaran, 19, from Aanaikkoaddai, Ms. Rasalingam Manickam, 62, a resident of Madduvil, Visuvalingam Balakrishnan, 41, from Pannaakam and Thavaraja Thenmoli, 26, of Changkuveali in Valikaamam have died due to rain related incidents, according to information released by Jaffna Secretariat officials.
Many people sought shelter in relatives' houses, schools and churches.
Though there were official reports that cooked meals were to be supplied to those displaced by the flooding, the relief food supply has not reached many of them, local residents told TamilNet.
Transport services in many parts of the peninsula were suspended, while the electricity supply was completely disrupted and telecommunication services were severely affected.
Another discomfort for the displaced is the effects of the embargo on goods going into the NorthEast. Aside from shortages of food and medicines, the displaced are also struggling to clear the carcasses of animals killed by the flooding.
Close to 5,000 cows and goats are estimated to have been killed by the floods, while the number of chickens killed is closer to 7,000.
Given that most animals are reared in family plots, the carcasses of these animals are now lying in the areas in which people live.
The embargo on goods into the area has made cleaning harder and means the smell of rotting flesh is yet another factor compounding the lives of the displaced.
