COLOMBO: The 57 Division of the Sri Lankan army on Sunday captured the strategically located LTTE-held village of Kokavil, on the arterial A9 highway in Mullaitivu district in the north of the island.
The Defence Ministry described the capture of Kokavil as a “landmark” as it was taken after a gap of 18 years. It was lost to the LTTE in July 1990 after a very long and tough battle in which Lt Saliya Upul Aladeniya fought the LTTE for a month, with just two platoons at his command. He had refused to withdraw despite orders to do so from the higher echelons, and fought to the last man. Lt Aladeniya was posthumously awarded the Parama Weera Vibhushanaya (PWV). He was the first to get that award.
The 57 Division is currently fighting very hard while negotiating mud bunds, water-logged ditches and trenches built by the LTTE. The battles in Thirumurugandi, Bharatipuram and Ariviyalnagar in the south and south west of Kilinochchi since November 21, have been very tough. The government does not give casualty figures, but the LTTE has said that 35 troops were killed.
The 57 Division, which is poised to cross the A9 highway, has been beefed up by the induction of a battalion of Special Forces, reports say.
The Tigers have built their earth bund-cum-ditch defences from Iranamadu to Kilinochchi posing a big challenge to the Sri Lankan troops. However, the earth bunds are being severely eroded by the monsoon rains, the ditches are getting filled up and the land has turned slushy, waterlogged and treacherous.
Three battalions of the 58 Division are operating west of Kilinochchi in Rudrapuram, Adampan South and Puthumurippu. The Tigers counter attacked ferociously when the 58 Division attempted to go to Kunjuparanthan via Rudrapuram on the Pooneryn- Paranthan road. Commando units of the Sri Lankan army had tried to move east, both in the north as well as the south of the Pooneryn-Paranthan road.
In all, about 10 battalions were involved in the operations in this area, Tamil media reports said.
LTTE DEPLOYS CRACK UNITS : The Iranamadu- Kilinochchi area is defended by two crack units of the LTTE, namely, the Imran-Pandiyan and Charles Anthony regiments, both under the overall direction of the LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran. The field commander is the redoubtable Velavan.
The rains as well stiff resistance have combined to slow down the Sri Lankan army’s operations in the past week. According to the Tamil weekly “Virakesari” the army’s first task would be to chose areas which are safe to stay put, and organise the supply lines, before taking the operations forward whether towards Kilinochchi or Mullaitivu.
It is in this grim context, that the capture of Kokavil on Sunday is a shot in the arm for the Sri Lankan armed forces. The other reason for happiness is that on Monday, 14 civilians from Nedunkerni and Pudukudiyiruppu escaped to the Omanthai checkpoint in Vavuniya district.
AID FROM TN ARRIVES: Meanwhile, on Monday, 50 lorries carrying relief packets from Tamil Nadu entered the Wanni from the Omanthai checkpoint.
Tamil Nadu had sent 80,000 packets of relief material for the 230,000 refugees Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu.
