PostHeaderIcon Sri Lankan civil war ends with surrender of Tamil separatists



After 25 years of war to gain a separate state for the Tamil minority, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) finally accepted defeat in a bloody culmination of their struggle. The civil war which claimed the lives of more than 70,000 since 1983 liberated thousands of trapped civilians in a coastline parcel of land, the last stronghold of the Tamil separatists.

"The military phase is over. The LTTE has been militarily defeated. Now the biggest hostage rescue operation in the world has come to a conclusion. The figure I have here is since 20th of April, 179,000 hostages have been rescued."---said Mahinda Samarasinghe, Minister of Disaster Management and Human Rights at Colombo news conference, 17 May 2009. VOA.com (05/17/09, Herman, S.)

Thousands of Sri Lankans welcomed the surrender with lighting of fireworks and street dancing. The LTTE which is generally regarded as a terrorist group waged a protracted guerilla campaign which failed to earn them their ethnic liberation. As Sri Lanka prepares for a national celebration, human Rights groups are mulling on investigating the astrocities committed by the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan military. (Photo Credit: Sri Lankan Army/ AP)=0=

RELATED BLOGS: "50 civilians die as artillery fire hits hospital in Sri Lanka"
Posted by mesiamd at 5/14/2009; "As Sri Lankan government forces battle Tamil separatists, death toll rises" Posted by mesiamd at 5/11/2009

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