Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka govt rejects rebels' accusations on landmine explosion

COLOMBO, Jul 11, 2005 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- The Sri Lankan government has rejected Tamil Tiger rebels' accusations that its troops had a hand in a landmine explosion on a bus transporting their members late June.

Jayantha Dhanapala, secretary general of the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP), Monday handed over to Hagrup Haukland, head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) the government response, Dhanapala's office said in a press release.

The Sri Lankan government has also pointed out that providing military escort for movements of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) through government controlled territory is a confidence building measure.

The LTTE had given a 14-day ultimatum for the government to respond to their security concern involving the issue.