Major LTTE attack foiled, says Indian Coastguard

INDIA: India’s coastguard said it had foiled a major attack when it seized a boat belonging to the LTTE packed with weapons, bomb-making chemicals and a suicide belt.

Officials said five men including a top LTTE cadre were on the boat when it was captured late Tuesday off the south coast of India.

“We have averted a major militant operation,” coast guard Regional Commander Rajendra Singh said late Wednesday, adding that the boat contained a “huge amount” of chemicals for making bombs.

“The suicide belt could blow up a large area so our preliminary assessment is that it was meant to cause destruction at a big temple celebration,” said Singh.

LTTE boats have in the past been captured off India’s Tamil Nadu coast carrying weapons bound for the Tigers in Sri Lanka. But this boat was carrying “dangerous arms and ammunition” towards the coast of Tamil Nadu, which has a predominantly Tamil population, he said. Two Indian fishermen were also arrested.

“The complete picture will emerge only after intelligence agencies complete their questioning of the arrested men,” Singh said. “It turned out to be a fibreglass boat with five men on board and no fishing gear,” he said.

Earlier this week, the Indian Navy caught a boat loaded with materials for making landmines and other explosives procured in southern India. The craft was bound for weapons factories in northern Sri Lanka, a police source who did not wish to be identified told AFP.