Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Environment
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
"Die with us" rebels tell Sri Lanka's refugees
Wed Feb 25, 2009 8:18pm EST
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Shihar Aneez
VAVUNIYA, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - The Tamil Tigers gave V. Rasamalar no choice in how she would die -- the separatist rebels told her she would die alongside them in Sri Lanka's war zone.
But the mother of two escaped heavy fighting and fled to an army-controlled area. She and her children are now living with about 1,000 other refugees in a military-run transit camp in the northern city of Vavuniya.
"The organization said we were going to die anyway if we crossed to the army-controlled area and told us to die with them," said 48-year-old Rasamalar, who fled the northern town of Udayarkattu when soldiers fought their way into it.
More than 36,000 Tamils since January 1 have fled to government-controlled areas, running from the final battles of a 25-year-old war and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels who tried to force them to stay.
"After a long time, at least me and my two children are relieved from hearing the sound of shells and life in a bunker," she told Reuters at a school converted into one of 15 temporary homes for Tamil refugees.
On the run for weeks or months, refugees say they faced the wrath of the rebels, constant combat, perpetual fear and little food or water.
"There is scarce food. Even 15-year-old youth are being forcibly recruited by the LTTE. We were not allowed to leave the war zone. This is the situation of over 200,000 Tamils in that area," S. Selvekumar told Reuters.
Formerly a security guard for an international aid agency, Selvekumar escaped at night in a boat that was rescued by the Sri Lankan navy. But he left his sister behind and still does not know now where she is.
"DON'T KNOW THEIR FATE"
Aid agencies estimate that 200,000 Tamils are now squeezed into a 12-km long stretch of land on the northeastern coast which the army has declared as a no-fire zone. The government says there are no more than 70,000 people there, along with the LTTE.
Soldiers are less than 5 km (2 miles) away, and commanders expect they will face a final showdown with the Tigers there -- one in which they will have to fight carefully to prevent any civilian casualties.
Ariyakutti Velayutham, a 72-year former manager of a Hindu temple who escaped on a Red Cross ship bringing out sick and wounded people, now spends his days fearing for the safety of his children and grandchildren.
"I do not know the fate of my two sons, a daughter, and a grandson who had been hiding from being forcibly recruited by the LTTE," he said in the presence of government officers.
He said the LTTE had fired artillery from populated areas, "compelling the army to target us." The military denies targeting civilians, but has acknowledged some may have been killed.
"There were radio messages by the LTTE saying that once we got into government-controlled areas, females would be raped and males would be tortured, but nothing has happened," he said. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Also on Reuters
Spray your tag on West Bank wall -- online
France's "Le Croupier" brings 3D casino to the UK
Slideshow
Slideshow: Energizing activism in gay America
More International News
Bangladesh troop mutinies break out beyond Dhaka
| Video
Turkish airliner crashes at Amsterdam airport, 9 dead
| Video
North Korean leader Kim near missile site: report
| Video
Downturn to cost billions in aid to world's poor
Mexico vows more troops for drug war near U.S. border
| Video
More International News...
Video
Supply lines under fire
Play Video
More Video...
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Exclusive: Lawyer says Guantanamo abuse worse since Obama | Video
Apple investors get no satisfaction on Jobs
Obamas praise Stevie Wonder at White House concert
Turkish airliner crashes at Amsterdam airport, 9 dead | Video
'Die with us' rebels tell Sri Lanka's refugees
Money managers accused of $550 million fraud | Video
Obama urges quick action on Wall Street reform | Video
Wall Street's allure may be gone for good
"Die with us" rebels tell Sri Lanka's refugees
Greeks shut airports, services to protest economy
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Supply lines under fire
Deadly crash at Amsterdam airport
Nine die in Netherlands plane crash
Indian man itching for beard record
Obama speech received well by public
"Slumdog" kids get homes
Obama taps China hand for Commerce
US strikes at Mexico drug ring
Down on the farm
New video of Mumbai attacks
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
the great debate
Obama's foreign policy challenges
President Barack Obama’s toughest foreign-policy challenge will be in managing the sheer number of complex problems he’s inherited and their refusal to arrive in orderly fashion. Commentary
Reuters Deals
The global destination for corporate leaders, deal-makers and innovators
Knowledge to Act
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Interactive TV |
Labs |
Reuters in Second Life |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.