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SEMI-RETIRED This user will not be very active (well, almost) on Misplaced Pages for some time.
First of all, if anyone has a problem with this (with a valid reason), please feel free to remove it. I'm just expressing my opinion here. The Sri Lankan Civil War has reached a decisive phase, where the Sri Lankan Military has captured almost all the territory that was under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a separatist group that has also been designated as a terrorist organization by 31 countries. Several weeks ago, the group retreated to a 'safety zone' declared for civilians by the Sri Lankan Government. Since then, more than 60,000 (some reports say the number may exceed 100,000) civilians were trapped inside this 'safety zone'. The government has accused the LTTE of holding the civilians hostage and using them as a human shield. Apart from the government, several foreign governments and organizations including the United Nations have urged the LTTE to stop holding civilians by force and to let them leave the area at will. However, the LTTE has always maintained that the civilians are staying of their own free will and fear the Sri Lankan forces.
On 20 April 2009, the Sri Lankan Military attacked the LTTE's northern defence lines of the 'safety zone'. The LTTE defences were broken, and the army's Special Forces and Commando units entered the area, forcing the LTTE to withdraw further into the safety zone. As soon as the lines were broken, civilians began fleeing the area into government controlled territory. 39,000 arrived on the 20th, and the count stands at more than 49,000 now. This video will show if they are coming of their own free will or if the military is forcing them to do so. The LTTE on the other hand, is trying desperately to keep the civilians in the area. Three suicide bombings were carried out targeting the fleeing civilians. This UAV footage released by the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence clearly shows LTTE cadres holding a large group of civilians at gunpoint. The ministry website and Sri Lankan media report that the LTTE is also shooting civilians that are trying to escape. 17 civilians have been killed and 200 wounded in these attacks according to their reports. The international media has conveniently forgotten to mention this, while they accuse the government forces of killing 1000 civilians (based on an accusation made by the LTTE). They have somehow decided that this unconfirmed accusation is more credible than the facts presented to them with clear proof.
Anyway, what really happened can be ascertained when the operation is concluded. Maybe it will be halted until some other time, or maybe it will be continued until the end. Fighting is continuing even now, and anyone with common sense can understand what the Sri Lankan forces are fighting for. This final battle is in order to free the country from separatism and terrorism, and to free our people from oppression. The so called superpowers of the world will tell us that civilians are dying and to stop the fighting, forgetting the things that they have done in the past few years. I have no doubt that no military in the world targets civilians deliberately, but the only difference is, when they do make a mistake it's "collateral damage" and when we make the mistake it's "genocide". However, as Vladimir Putin once said, "No one has a moral right to tell us to talk to terrorists.... There are people with whom one does not negotiate".