SRILANKAN ARMY Vs Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam!.

Dealing a massive blow to the LTTE, Sri Lankan Army on Friday captured the rebels' de-facto capital Kilinochchi after ten years in its second major military success in the quarter-century long battle between the two sides.

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The LTTE virtually conceded the strategic loss when it said that the Army entered a virtual ghost town as the whole civilian infrastructure as well as the centre of the LTTE had shifted further northeast. 'It is the first time after a decade the Sri Lankan forces have been able to take control of the town after several months of fierce fighting that has claimed hundreds of combatants on both sides of the war,' pro-LTTE website TamilNet reported. Savouring the major success in its offensive against the LTTE, President Rajapakse called as an unparallelled victory the capture of Kilinochchi, which was made the de-facto capital after the rebels had lost Jaffna town a few years ago. 'For the last time, I am telling the LTTE to lay down arms and surrender,' he said in a televised address as celebrations erupted across Colombo with people bursting fire crackers. But the news was also greeted by a suicide attack opposite the Air Force headquarters here when a suspected LTTE rebel triggered explosives killing two people and injuring more than 20 others. Analysts believe that the fall of Kilinochchi could embolden the troops into moving towards the Elephant Pass, the entry point to the Jaffna peninsula and also open the A-9 Highway for smooth transportation of supplies. The analysts also feel that the loss of Kilinochchi would be a major psychological blow to its morale while it would be big boost to the Government's campaign against the rebels fighting for the separate Tamil Eelam (homeland). The LTTE, which once enjoyed tremendous political support in Tamil Nadu and with the Governments at the Centre in 1980s, squandered much of it after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by one of its suicide bombers in Sriperumbudur in 1991. The army also hoisted its flag in various installations in Kilinochchi marking its victory after 10 years when LTTE had reclaimed from the Army. Announcing the fall of Kilinochchi, Rajapakse said the recent comments of Prabhakaran that the capture of Kilinochchi would remain a dream of the Sri Lankan President has been proved wrong. 'Today, on the second day of this heroic year, I am now ready to reveal to you the proud news of the most honourable victory in the annals of military heroism that runs through many centuries of our history,' he said announcing the fall of Kilinochchi to the nation. 'It was the constant dream of all Sri Lankans, whether Sinhala, Tamil or Muslim, who are opposed to separatism, racism, and terrorism, and have always, sought peace, freedom and democracy. Today our heroic troops have made that dream a reality,' he said. 'It is a decisive victory over savage terrorism that was playing around with the blood, muscle and sinews of humans. It is a victory over venomous separatism that sought to divide people on grounds of race and religion. Three columns of government forces advanced from three fronts this morning with tanks, heavy artillery and under heavy air bombardment to overwhelm Tigers' defences and marched triumphantly into the city centre capturing major buildings. Army chief Gen Sarath Fonseka said taking Kilinochchi was the culmination of a major military offensive that began in March 2007 and has witnessed daily fightings for at least nine months. The Lankan troops are also fast advancing on the last bastion of the Tigers' Mullaitivu which they have surrounded from all sides, defence ministry spokesman Udaya Nayanakara said. Over 100 Tiger rebels have been killed over the last two days as army took complete control of the Paranthan and Iranmadhu townships near the LTTE de-facto capital on Thursday and launched the final assault from these areas on Kilinochchi, officials said. Troops and tanks entered into the Tiger capital from three sides this morning and were engaged in heavy fighting to clear the town of LTTE remnants who were on the run, defence officials said. Lankan troops were carrying out flushing out operations by searching all buildings and complexes. 'There is no option available for the LTTE rebels other than to flee towards the jungle patches in Puthukuduiruppu and Vishvamadu in the East of Iranamadu tank as troops aggressively advanced towards the heart of Kilinochchi in all fronts,' the Defence Ministry said. LTTE's political head Balasingham Nadesan had recently said in an interview that even if Kilinochchi were to fall, the LTTE would carry on a guerrilla war against the Sri Lankans. An army spokesman separately said that all the key landmarks of Kilinochchi were in government hands. ********************************************* My Point Of View: ****************** 1).THE GLOBAL PEOPLE CONDEMNS THE ATTACK OF GAZA. BUT WHY YOUR NOT CONDEMNS IN SRILANKA?. 2).why Pakistan,India,AMERICA,ISRAEL,BANGLADESH TO "HELP AND PLAN" - IN SRILANKAN ARMY?