Sri Lanka

British, French foreign ministers begin visit to Sri Lanka

British, French foreign ministers begin visit to Sri LankaColombo (dpa) ? The foreign ministers of Britain and France were set Wednesday to visit thousands of displaced people in northern Sri Lanka, while government officials said the army was concentrating on rescuing civilians trapped in the last remaining area held by Tamil rebels.

British Foreign Minister David Miliband and his French counterpart Bernard Kouchner are to meet Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, President Mahinda Rajapaksa before visiting refugee camps in the Vavuniya area, 254 kilometres north of Colombo.

Sri Lanka has 200,000 refugees displaced by conflict, UN says

Sri Lanka has 200,000 refugees displaced by conflict, UN saysNew York - Tens of thousands of Sri Lankans are still trapped in conflict zone while some 200,000 others remain in swollen refugee camps waiting for relief assistance, the top UN humanitarian coordinator said Tuesday. John Holmes said continued fighting between government troops and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in the northern part of the country has exacerbated conditions for both populations. He said LTTE rebels have so far refused to let go civilians trapped by the fighting, which he described as the first crisis facing the government.

UN: Sri Lanka lacking humanitarian funding

UN: Sri Lanka lacking humanitarian fundingGeneva - The United Nations gave 10 million dollars from its emergency relief fund for Sri Lanka, noting Tuesday that humanitarian needs in the Asian country remain underfunded. With the new donation, 37 per cent of the 155 million dollars needed for Sri Lanka this year were covered. About one third of the funds came from the emergency fund .

UN officials said that they had at best "sporadic access" for their humanitarian missions to the coastal enclave in Sri Lanka where tens of thousands of civilians remained trapped in dire conditions.

Sri Lanka refuses entry to Swedish Foreign Minister

Sri Lanka refuses entry to Swedish Foreign MinisterSri Lanka refuses entry to Swedish Foreign MinisterColombo, Apr. 28 : A day after declaring an end to the use of heavy artillery and aerial weaponry against the rebel Liberation of Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE), the Government of Sri Lanka has refused entry to Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.

Bildt was to have arrived in Colombo on Wednesday with British counterpart David Miliband and France''s Bernard Kouchner to assess the situation in northern Sri Lanka.

Pro-Tamil supporters label Sonia Gandhi a terrorist

Pro-Tamil supporters label Sonia Gandhi a terroristLondon, April 27 : Supporters of the Sri Lankan Tamils right to self-determination have described Sonia Gandhi, the wife of former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, as a terrorist out to finish the community as retribution for her husband's assassination allegedly by the LTTE in May 1991.

Tamil rebels say Sri Lanka army launching airstrikes, artillery

Tamil rebels say Sri Lanka army launching airstrikes, artillery Colombo  - Tamil rebels Tuesday accused Sri Lankan government troops of breaking assurances the army would refrain from using heavy weaponry while an estimated 50,000 civilians remain trapped in the last area held by the rebels.

Both the military and Tamil rebels confirmed that fighting was continuing around the Mullaivikkal area, 390 kilometres north of Colombo, in a narrow coastal strip of about 6 square kilometers in the Mullaitivu district.

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