Navy foils LTTE attack on civilian ship

Passengers reach KKS unharmed:

Ranil Wijayapala

NAGARKOVIL: Naval troops yesterday foiled a major LTTE attack on the civilian passenger vessel 'Green Ocean I' with 300 Jaffna bound civilians from Trincomalee in the sea off Nagarkovil destroying a flotilla of Sea Tiger boats including three suicide boats.

Navy Commander Vice Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda told the Daily News last night that the Navy escorted the 'Green Ocean I' to a safer area amidst the Sea Tiger attack without any harm to the civilian passengers.

Later in the evening the ship safely reached its destination Kankesanthurai.

He said 'Green Ocean I' which commenced its voyage at 5.30 a.m. from Trincomalee, was sailing in the sea off Nagarkovil and Point Pedro at the time it came under a LTTE attack at 5.15 p.m.

The Essential Services Commissioner chartered 'Green Ocean I' for the sole purpose of transporting from Trincomalee to Kankesanthurai the civilians stranded due to the closure of the A-9 road at Muhamalai.

The ship took its first 300 passengers to Kankesanthurai last Sunday after they were taken from Vavuniya to Trincomalee on Saturday evening. "A flotilla of 16 Tiger boats including three suicide boats launched an attack on Green Ocean I which was sailing with 300 civilian passengers around 5.15 p.m," Navy Spokesman Commander D.K.P. Dasanayaka told the Daily News.

He said Fast Attack Craft of the Navy confronted the flotilla of Sea Tiger boats destroying eight of their boats including three suicide boats.

"We believe more than 40 LTTE cadres were killed in the attack," Commander Dasanayaka added.

"Naval troops with air support by the Sri Lanka Air Force is chasing the other eight boats," he added. He said two suicide boats rammed into to two Dvora fast Attack Craft escorting Green Ocean I, destroying one and damaging the other.

He said Naval troops engaged in search operations in the sea off Point Pedro rescued three sailors injured in the attack.

"We are conducting search operations to rescue the other sailors reported missing during the confrontation."

Commander Dasanayaka described the attack as a repeat of the LTTE attack on 'Pearl Cruise II' in the same sea territory while it was transporting 710 unarmed troops from Trincomalee to Kankesanturai on May 11. The LTTE also made another abortive attempt to launch an attack on the unarmed troops carrying vessel 'Jet Liner' in the sea off Trincomalee on August 1.

The LTTE is launching these desperate attacks on passenger ships since they could not block the Government's effort of supplying essential items to Jaffna peninsula by sea, Navy sources said.