SRI LANKA: Army kills civilians

TamilNet reported on August 2 that an eight-year-old boy was killed by Sri Lankan Army artillery fire in a church in Muttur where more than 600 Tamils were seeking refuge after fighting broke out on August 1 between the SLA and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. According to TamilNet, three Tamils were also killed when the SLA opened fire on an ambulance transferring patients. On August 3, at least 10 Muslim refugees were killed when the Arabic College was hit by an SLA artillery shell, and a further twelve killed in the Al Nuriah Muslim school in Thoppur. Dozens more were wounded. Thousands of Muslims had sought refuge in the colleges and mosques in Muttar. The Sri Lankan government cut off electricity and phone services to the town. While the government claimed that the LTTE was responsible for the killings of Muslim civilians, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader Rauf Hakeem told media that "the people were killed in attacks carried out by the security forces".

From GLW issue 678