"Am I therefore become your enemy,because I TELL YOU THE TRUTH...?"
(Galatians 4:16)

Sri Lanka Demands Rebels Disarm

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka-The Sri Lankan government said Thursday that the Tamil Tiger rebels must disarm before any future peace talks, a day after the authorities decided to withdraw from an internationally brokered cease-fire with the insurgents.The 2002 truce had largely collapsed-a resurgence in fighting between the two sides came two years ago-when the Cabinet unanimously approved the prime minister's proposal to pull out from it on Wednesday."It's useless talking to them (the rebels) now," Cabinet spokesman and Media Minister Anura Yapa told a news conference Thursday."But in the future, due to change of situations if they decide to lay down their arms and come to talks, the government can reconsider," he said.The cease-fire, brokered by Norway, had been considered the best chance of ending two decades of civil war between the government and the Tamil Tiger rebels, who seek an independent homeland for ethnic Tamils in the north and east. But major fighting erupted again two years ago."Today it was proposed to the Cabinet by the honorable prime minister that the cease-fire is no longer valid and it's time to withdraw from the cease-fire agreement," Yapa said Wednesday. "All the ministers agreed to the proposal."Under the agreement, both sides must give 14 days notice before officially withdrawing from the truce.Peace-broker Norway expressed regret Thursday over the Sri Lankan government's decision, warning that violence could escalate further."This comes on top of the increasingly frequent and brutal acts of violence perpetrated by both parties, and I am deeply concerned that the violence and hostilities will now escalate even further," Environment and International Development Minister Erik Solheim was quoted as saying on the Norwegian Foreign Ministry Web site.The Sri Lankan government declared in July that it has routed the rebels from the east. In recent months, the military has focused on crushing the rebels in their de facto state in the north, with near- daily battles raging along the front lines deep in the jungle.A mine blast that struck an army truck transporting food in northern Sri Lanka on Thursday killed two soldiers and wounded another, military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said. He blamed the rebels, but the group could not immediately be reached for comment.On Wednesday, suspected Tamil Tiger rebels detonated a bomb near a bus carrying wounded soldiers through a busy commercial district in Sri Lanka's capital, killing one soldier and three civilians and wounding 24 other people, the military said.Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan insisted the Tamil Tigers had "nothing to do with" the blast.The U.S. Embassy condemned the attack and called on the government and the rebels to work for peace.Air force jets launched two airstrikes in the north, one targeting a Tamil Tiger naval base in Mannar district and the other a logistics base in Mullaitivu district, Nanayakkara said without giving details of damage or casualties.He said the raids were not carried out in retaliation of the Colombo bombing, but were a result of previously gathered intelligence.The rebels said in an e-mail that air force jets bombed a civilian area in Mullaitivu, wounding two civilians and damaging six houses. They did not comment on the military's claim of the attack in Mannar.Nanayakkara said soldiers also battled with Tamil guerrillas along the front lines in the north, leaving 13 rebels dead. The fighting killed two soldiers and wounded six others.There was no immediate comment from rebels on the infantry clashes.It was not possible to independently verify the claims of either the military or the rebels.The Tamil Tigers, listed as a terrorist group by the United States and European Union, have been blamed for more than 240 suicide bombings and scores of other attacks in their 24-year war. The rebels historically deny responsibility for the attacks, which target military, political and civilian installations and officials.In November, a suspected rebel suicide bomber killed a Cabinet minister's aide in Colombo in what was described as a failed assassination attempt on the minister. Later that day, a bomb exploded near a busy clothing store in a Colombo suburb, killing nearly 20 civilians.The rebels complain of decades of discrimination by governments dominated by the Sinhalese majority. More than 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8TU9B780&show_article=1&catnum=0
As in the days of Noah...