Troops spearheaded by Commandos yesterday (Wednesday 11th July) captured Baron's Cap (Thoppigala), adding an epic victory to the annals of security forces' achievements. With this victory, troops gained control over the "nerve centre" of the LTTE terrorists in their last bastion in the Eastern province.

The troops have also gained full control over Narakamula, and Tharavikulama areas where, the LTTE leadership had its Eastern headquarters and other fortifications. The victorious soldiers are at present clearing enemy "pockets" scattered in the dense jungle and are pursuing the LTTE cadres who are on the run.

According to The Media Center for National Security (MCNS), army during this operation the army has captured two 120mm mortar guns and a number of vehicles including five tractors, one bulldozer, one cantor truck, and two double cabs abandoned by the fleeing terrorists. The MCNS further added that troops still have to wipe up a large amount of booby traps, land mines and anti-personnel mines left by the terrorists.

SL military undertook their noble mission to liberate the Eastern Province from the clutches of terror when the LTTE terrorists closed down the Mavil Aru anicut on 20 June 2006.

Thereafter, troops bravely faced the LTTE's terrorist attacks on Kattaparichchan, Muttur, Toppur, Selvanagar and Mahindapura on August 2 last year and foiled their plans to cripple supplies to the Jaffna peninsula. The terrorists were flushed out from Sampur, and Ilakanthair in subsequent operations carried out from August 27 to September 31 last year.

They then moved to clear the threats in the areas surrounding the Trincomalee harbour in Gangai and Manirasakulam from October 1 to 6 and moved to liberate the 30,000 civilian population kept as a human shield by the LTTE in Vakarai and Kathirveli from October 30 January 21.

After liberating Vakarai, LTTE domination had been restricted to Thoppigala area from where they continued to attack civilians and the security forces in the Eastern province. Since February 2007, troops commenced their march into the remaining non-liberated areas in the East where over 65000 civilians had been living under the clutches of terror.

Police Special Task Force (STF) personnel moved from Kangikadichchi Aru northwards, wiping out LTTE bases up to Pillumalai while the SL Army soldiers moved westward form Vavunativu capturing Kokkadicholai, Ayittimalai, Unnichchai and Karadiyanru LTTE bases. By April 2007, the troops were able to clear the A-5 main road completely by capturing the part of the road between Chenkaladi and Mahoya, which had been under LTTE control for over 13 years. .

Since then, SL Army soldiers were engaged in a Herculean task to capture dense jungle terrain in Thoppigala, which had been under LTTE domination since 1994. The troops advanced form three frontiers namely; Karadiyanaru Northward, Sittandi Westward and Welikanda southward, up against terror barricades, booby traps, and land mines in the rocky jungle terrain.

Air Force fighter jets supported the ground troops with air cover repeatedly bombing identified LTTE targets. SL Navy totally denied the enemy using sea lines of communications and thereby cuting off their reinforcement or evacuation attempts via sea. In addition, the Navy marines guarding the coastline North of Trincomalee successfully ambushed small groups of LTTE cadres who had managed to escape from Thoppigala.

The Eastern Province of the Island is made up of 9,965 square kilometers in extent and covers around 16 per cent of the total land area of Sri Lanka. The maximum length is 286 kilometres from Kumana in the south to Pulmoddai in the north-east. The maximum breadth is 89 kilometres from Ulhitiya in the west to Kirankulam in the East. The province is enriched with a 420 kilometre coastline (Ampara 110 kms, Batticaloa 100 kms and Trincomalee 210 kms). It is the only province with three airports at Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara.

The liberation of the Eastern Province should not be viewed as a mere battlefield success to gain control over terrain. It was to prevent a group of megalomaniac terrorists turning a vital piece of the motherland into a mono-ethnic hellhole. The Eastern Province has been the homeland for generations of Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims since ancient times.

During their two decades of terrorist war, the LTTE terrorist have been targeting the civilians living in the East in their remorseless ethnic cleansing raids. The terrorist who used to come out form their hideouts in the Thoppigala jungle at nighttime had slaughtered thousands of innocent civilians in villages such as Arlaganvila, Dimbulagala, Welikanda and Maha-Oya in the most barbaric fashion.

On the other hand, Tamil people in the East have become mere scapegoats of a terror outfit whose sole interest is to make a cannon fodder of their children. Thousands of Tamil children in the East have been forcibly taken away from their parents and trained into a bunch of suicide bombers or used as "one way fighters" against security forces, while their Wanni leaders always hid themselves in safe havens.

Thus, the victory at Thoppigala is indeed a victory of the whole nation. Once it was described as an impregnable stronghold defended by the most ruthless LTTE cadres. However, today, that myth has been blown sky high. The heroic soldiers are now in control of Thoppigala.

The terrorists on the other hand, have suffered massive physical and psychological blows. Terror supremo, V. Prabhakaran, who once again plunged the country into war by capturing the Mavilaru anicut, finds himself hoist with his own petard.