THE MILITARY advisor to the British High Commission in Sri Lanka, Lieutenant Colonel A. S. Gash, along with two other British military officers, Lieutenant Colonel Dan Rex and Wing Commander Andy Lee flew to Jaffna last weekend on a two-day official visit to the Sri Lankan military there.
The visiting British military officers on their arrival in Palaly airbase were received by the Security Forces commander in Jaffna, Major General G.A. Chandrasiri, and were later conducted to military headquarters for a formal briefing on the security arrangements in place in the peninsula.
An estimated 40,000 Sri Lankan troops are occupying the Tamil-dominated peninsula. In the past few two years, as in the previous phase of the conflict, from 1995-2001, Sri Lankan troops have carried thousands of abductions, disappearances and extra-judicial killings.
600 people who went missing in the three month period after July 1996, were “either tortured to death or killed in military custody,” an Amnesty International report said.
Since August 2006, the Sri Lankan military has been conducting major offensives against the LTTE’s frontlines in the Jaffna peninsula. On April 23, the SLA suffered a serious setback, losing almost 200 soldiers killed and 350 wounded.
However, during his briefing to the British delegation, Major General G.A. Chandrasiri gave an account regarding humanitarian work carried out so far by the military in the period after August last year.
The British delegation paid a visit to areas controlled by the SLA’s 51 Division and 55 Division, which “enabled them to get a better picture,” the SLA said.
The British delegation also met Division Commander in 53 Division area and obtained a detailed report on the conditions prevailing in its areas of control.
The SLA’s 53 and 55 Divisions are those engaged in offensive operations, whilst the 51 and 52 Divisions are responsible for controlling the peninsula and its 600,000 residents.
As the last leg of their visit, they visited the Northern Naval command in Kankasanthurai and Palaly air base before they returned to Colombo on Saturday.
The visiting British military officers on their arrival in Palaly airbase were received by the Security Forces commander in Jaffna, Major General G.A. Chandrasiri, and were later conducted to military headquarters for a formal briefing on the security arrangements in place in the peninsula.
An estimated 40,000 Sri Lankan troops are occupying the Tamil-dominated peninsula. In the past few two years, as in the previous phase of the conflict, from 1995-2001, Sri Lankan troops have carried thousands of abductions, disappearances and extra-judicial killings.
600 people who went missing in the three month period after July 1996, were “either tortured to death or killed in military custody,” an Amnesty International report said.
Since August 2006, the Sri Lankan military has been conducting major offensives against the LTTE’s frontlines in the Jaffna peninsula. On April 23, the SLA suffered a serious setback, losing almost 200 soldiers killed and 350 wounded.
However, during his briefing to the British delegation, Major General G.A. Chandrasiri gave an account regarding humanitarian work carried out so far by the military in the period after August last year.
The British delegation paid a visit to areas controlled by the SLA’s 51 Division and 55 Division, which “enabled them to get a better picture,” the SLA said.
The British delegation also met Division Commander in 53 Division area and obtained a detailed report on the conditions prevailing in its areas of control.
The SLA’s 53 and 55 Divisions are those engaged in offensive operations, whilst the 51 and 52 Divisions are responsible for controlling the peninsula and its 600,000 residents.
As the last leg of their visit, they visited the Northern Naval command in Kankasanthurai and Palaly air base before they returned to Colombo on Saturday.
