11.5.2008
By Ananth Palakidnar
ananth@sundayobserver.lk
A
70-metre long cargo vessel came under attack at 2.15 a.m.
yesterday at the Naval harbour in Trincomalee. The sailors
on board at the time of the attack escaped without any
injury, according to Navy spokesperson Commander D. K.
P. Dassanayake.
Commander
Dassanayake told the Sunday Observer that when the vessel
came under attack by the Sea Tigers it was anchored in
the harbour and did not contain any cargo. “The
vessel which weighs around 5,000 tonnes and 70 metres
in length sank after the attack”, the Navy spokesperson
said.
He
said that this particular vessel was apprehended by the
Navy in Lankan waters with 254 people on board when she
was involved in human trafficking in 2003. The ship was
later confiscated by the Navy following a court order.
In 2005 the vessel was also badly damaged due to the tsunami
waves when it was anchored in Galle in 2004. However,
it was repaired and used by the Navy.
“We
believe the attack was carried out by an LTTE suicide
squad under water, due to frustration that it could not
bring its lethal cargo into Lankan waters,” Commander
Dassanayake said.
Meanwhile,
police in Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu seized a massive haul
of explosive items in 85 gunny bags and arrested five
persons who attempted to smuggle them to Sri Lanka on
Wednesday. The gunny bags contained detonators, gelignite
sticks, wires and various other explosive items.
The
suspects who are being currently grilled by the Rameswaram
police said that they were taking them to the LTTE at
the time the police nabbed them on the Rameswaram high
seas.
Investigations
are also being carried out to track down the smuggling
network that operates between the LTTE and Rameswaram
despite the stringent security measures in place to prevent
LTTE links with South India.
Courtesy - Sunday
Observer