Latest Sri Lanka Stories
By Peter Apps COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers said at least 20 civilians were killed and 26 wounded in air force raids on Monday in the island's east, as the army launched a new push into Tiger territory. The military said it had raided identified rebel targets south of the strategic port of Trincomalee 145 miles northeast of the capital, Colombo. It said 8 soldiers were killed and 28 wounded during fighting to take rebel-held villages. "They are continually shelling and...
By Peter Apps COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's army launched a new push into Tamil Tiger rebel territory in the east on Monday, while in the besieged north an air force transport plane ferried in munitions and took out the dead. At least four soldiers were killed in Monday's fighting. Hundreds have been killed in violence this month, the worst fighting since a 2002 truce, but so far the front lines have barely moved. But the government says it wants the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam...
By Anuruddha Lokuhapuarachchi ABOARD SRI LANKA AIR FORCE ANTONOV- (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's air force flew munitions to the island's besieged north on Monday and flew out dead troops in white body bags, as fresh fighting flared in the east. Officials said two soldiers were killed and 12 others injured when a patrol was attacked by Tamil Tiger rebels near a camp in the restive northeastern district of Trincomalee -- the second such clash in as many days. Hundreds of people have been...
By Simon Gardner TRINCOMALEE DISTRICT, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Scanning the horizon as Tamil Tiger rebels fire mortar bombs toward their makeshift camp, troops in this corner of northeast Sri Lanka say renewed civil war is futile. "No-one can win the war. It is a guerrilla war, so we can't win," said one officer freshly drafted in with reinforcements to the restive district of Trincomalee in Sri Lanka's northeast as mortar fire boomed from nearby rebel lines. "They are inside the jungle....
By Simon GardnerPERALIYA, Sri Lanka -- In a small room up a rickety staircase in a tsunami-damaged building on Sri Lanka's south coast, Roshan Waduthantri sits glued to an earthquake warning Web site and monitors cable TV channels."Look, there has been a quake in the Scotia Sea," he said, monitoring U.S. Geological Survey Web site www.usgs.gov. "We monitor all day and all night, and if there is a major earthquake, we tell the local community."More than 1- years have passed...
By Simon Gardner TRINCOMALEE, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - The first foreign nationals and aid workers to be evacuated from Sri Lanka's besieged north sailed into this eastern port on Sunday, only to be met by volleys of rockets and artillery amid fresh fighting. The military said it fired artillery and mortar bombs at rebel positions south of the Tiger-held town of Sampur after the Tigers fired at a patrol near an army camp. Seven soldiers were injured. Reuters correspondents in nearby...
By Simon Gardner TRINCOMALEE, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - The first foreign nationals and aid workers to be evacuated from Sri Lanka's besieged north sailed into this eastern port on Sunday, only to be met by volleys of rockets and artillery amid fresh fighting. Military sources said the army had begun a limited operation targeting rebel positions near the Tiger-held town of Sampur, and said some soldiers had been injured. Reuters correspondents in nearby Trincomalee saw flashes on the...
By Simon Gardner PALAI NAGAR, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Hundreds of displaced villagers are venturing back to inspect homes shelled during fighting between Tamil rebels and the army in northeast Sri Lanka, and 20-year-old Ripan Rimas made an unexpected discovery. "The Tigers built a bunker here in our garden," she said, pointing at a tree trunk laid sideways and stacks of bricks. "I won't go over there. I won't let the children go. I think something may explode." Liberation Tigers of...
By Anuruddha Lokuhapuarachchi JAFFNA, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - The Red Cross evacuated foreigners from Sri Lanka's northern Jaffna peninsula and distributed aid there on Saturday after a two week siege, but the army said a bomb left by withdrawing rebels killed six soldiers. The fighting between Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces, the first ground battles since a 2002 ceasefire, has displaced more than 200,000 people and cut off half a million people in Jaffna from essential...
By Anuruddha Lokuhapuarachchi JAFFNA, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Officials distributed aid on Sri Lanka's besieged Jaffna peninsula on Saturday and foreign nationals were being evacuated as two Red Cross vessels docked there after weeks of fighting cut off the region. The fighting between Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces, the first ground battles since a 2002 ceasefire, has displaced more than 200,000 people, cut off half a million people in Jaffna from essential supplies and left...
Latest Sri Lanka Reference Libraries
The Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) is a subspecies of the leopard that is native to Sri Lanka. The range of this subspecies is highly fragmented, but in some areas, it does occur in high numbers. It prefers many types of habitats including rainforests, arid scrublands, evergreen monsoon forests, upper and lowland forests, and damp forests. The Sri Lankan leopard differs in size depending upon sex. Males can reach and average body length of about our feet with an average weight...
The golden palm civet (Paradoxurus zeylonensis) is a small mammal that can be found in Sri Lanka. Its range is fragmented into separate areas, including the Sinharaja Forest area, Uda Walawe National Park, and Wasgomuwa and Yala National Parks. It prefers a habitat in evergreen, monsoon, and lowland forests. The coat of this civet is dark brown to brownish gold in color. Although there is not much information about this species, it is thought to consume many things like insects, berries,...
The ruddy mongoose (Herpestes smithii) is native to Sri Lanka and India. It prefers a habitat within forested areas, but can sometimes be found in open fields. It holds two subspecies throughout its range, with one occurring in Sri Lanka and the other occurring in India. This species resembles the Indian gray mongoose, although it is larger and has a longer, black tipped tail. As is similar to mongoose species, it hunts during the daytime and nighttime. In Sri Lanka, this mongoose is called...
Symbol: LIROW Group: Dicot Family: Oleaceae Classification: Kingdom Plantae – Plants Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants Division Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants Class Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons Subclass Asteridae Order Scrophulariales Family Oleaceae – Olive family Genus Ligustrum L. –...
The Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala) is a species of bird that is found in Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. It is native to the Indian subcontinent. This bird's natural habitat is forest and open woodland. Though not exploited heavily, aviculture is taking its toll on local populations of this species across most of its range. Population is reduced in urban areas and heavily inhabited regions. The adult is about 13 inches long with a tail that can measure up to...
