Three killed, 11 students injured in LTTE artillery attack

Rafik JALALDEEN

TRINCOMALEE: Three civilians were killed and 11 schoolchildren and a teacher injured when indiscriminate artillery fire by the LTTE hit Somadevi Vidyalaya and a nearby village in Kallaru in the cleared areas in Trincomalee yesterday.

The LTTE cadres fired artillery towards Somadevi school in Kallaru at 11.30 a.m. injuring 11 school children and a teacher. Later at 12.10 p.m Tiger terrorists fired another round of artillery shells on a house in the Kallaru village killing three civilians including a 10-year-old child, Military Spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe said.

The injured were admitted to Kantale hospital. "Two injured school children are in critical condition," he added.

The LTTE is launching these artillery attacks locating their heavy calibre artillery guns in densely populated areas in Kathirveli and Vakarai to prevent the Security Forces from retaliating, Samarasinghe said.

"The LTTE under the cover of the human shields are launching these attacks to prevent the Security Forces retaliatory fire," the Brigadier said.

He said that troops were unable to retaliate against the attacks while the LTTE was using Kathirveli and Vakarai villagers as a human shield. Over 10,000 civilians are living in these areas and they are under threat of being used as human shields.

"The SLMM and INGO's were informed to remove the civilians from these ares so that the Forces can counter the LTTE fire and we are waiting for their response," he remarked.