COLOMBO: The failure to hold on to its most important military base at Puthkudiyiruppu, and the sudden loss of as many as a dozen top run field commanders, have triggered a major crisis of confidence in the top echelons of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE ), well informed Sri Lankan government sources say.
Tiger chieftain Velupillai Prabhakaran’s domain has shrunk to 17 sq km. He is now left with just two toplevel commanders, namely, Sornam and Pottu Amman. And Pottu Amman is basically an intelligence man, not a hardcore military man. There are unconfirmed reports that Soosai, the architect and commander of the Sea Tigers, has slipped out of the island.
The Defence Ministry said on Monday, that it had received credible reports that Silambarasan, the head of the Radha Regiment, and his deputy, Anbu, were killed in gun battles north of Puthukudiyiruppu. Others dead were the chief of the mortar unit, Gopal; the head of the mines section, Asmi; and a leader of the Sothiya Womens’ Brigade, Mohana.
It is believed that Supremo Prabhakaran has been unable to personally command his legions, because of ill health. He suffers from non-insulin dependent diabetes and a heart condition.
“With such setbacks and losses, Pottu Amman broke down. He was in tears, we hear,” a well-placed source told Express on Monday.
According to Sri Lankan intelligence, Prabhakaran himself may have become a refugee, shifting to the government- designated Safe Zone along the coast.
CHARLES ANTHONY– POTTU AMMAN CLASH: Given his poor health and the loss of top of the line commanders, Prabhakaran is said to be eager to anoint his 24-year-old son, Charkes Anthony, as his deputy and successor.
But Sri Lankan intelligence believes that this is being resented by Pottu Amman, who has been Prabhakaran’s confidante for years, and an unquestioned and proven believer in the ideology, goals and the brutal methods of the LTTE .
Meawhile, the Sri Lankan Army Commander, Lt.Gen.Sarath Fonseka, told the US Ambassador Robert Blake here on Monday, that there was civil unrest in the Safe Zone with the people wanting to leave the area.