Navy to patrol Indian Ocean with Indonesia,Maldives

In the backdrop of increased piracy related incidents and illegal activities in the Indian Ocean Region, India will join littoral countries, Indonesia and Maldives, to patrol the waters to protect their maritime boundary this month.

The navies of India and Indonesia would carry out their 14th coordinated patrolling of Malacca straits region, once a piracy hit area in the Indian Ocean, from October 18 to November 5.

The Indian Navy would also deploy a Dornier maritime patrol aircraft in the Maldives as part of the security assistance New Delhi agreed to provide Male to secure its waters from pirates and threat from terror groups.

"To increase the cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region, the Indian Navy will conduct coordinated patrols of the international maritime boundary with Indonesia.

Source: ptinews.com

India, Maldives step up anti-piracy drive

India and the Maldives have decided to stepup anti-piracy and marine counter-terrorism operations in the Indian Ocean. Underlining the importance of greater maritime surveillance in the Indian Ocean, Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed, on Thursday said the Mumbai attacks have “all the footprints of a 16th century piracy activity in the Indian Ocean”.

The Mumbai terror attacks and enhanced security cooperation in the Indian Ocean figured prominently in discussions between Prime minister Manmohan Singh and Nasheed on Wednesday

Before departing for Male on Thursday, Nasheed in response to a question about his country’s perception of the Mumbai terror attacks said, “It (the Mumbai terror attack) came from Karachi via the sea. We would like countries to remain vigilant in the Indian Ocean, specially in view of the Mumbai attacks.”

Maldive’s first democratically elected president in three decades said, “We are a nation of sea-farers. We understand the topography of the Indian Ocean. We are very concerned about it.” While underscoring the importance of greater security cooperation between India and the Maldives in the Indian Ocean, the visiting leader said that, “There are pirate activities. We would like the Indian Ocean a peaceful one.”

With the Mumbai attacks as a backdrop, the two countries plan to intensify interaction between their coast guards, Nasheed said. Adding, “Joint exercises are now held every two years. It will be more frequent now.” “Pirates could be recruited into terrorist cells. You have sealed your borders (with Pakistan), but you have pushed terrorists to the Indian Ocean,” he said.

Source: www.financialexpress.com

Yemen to host regional meeting on combating piracy

Yemen will host the second regional meeting on combating piracy which to be held on 27-30 October in participation of representatives of 20 countries .

Diplomatic sources pointed out that the 20 countries would sign a memorandum of understanding to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships sailing in the Gulf of Aden.

The Gulf of Aden has witnessed an increasing piracy in the past few months which posed dangers against the international navigation movement in the region, according to official reports.

An official source in Transportation Ministry said to the state-run 26sep.net that Yemen had decided to set up three centres for monitoring the international waters in the Gulf of Aden as part of efforts to fight piracy and human trafficking in the Horn of Africa.

"The centres would be established in the port cities of Aden and Mukalla on the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea port of Houdieda", added the source.

The sources affirmed that Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Djibouti, Jordan, Somalia, Comoros, France, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Madagascar, Maldives, The Seychelle Islands, South Africa, Tanzania, Eritrea, Mozambique and Yemen would sign the memorandum of understanding.

Since July, 12 ships have been hijacked in the narrow waterway separating Yemen and Somalia by heavily-armed pirates operating high-powered speedboats, according to the International Maritime Bureau. Eleven are still being held for ransom.

Two rockets were fired at a French tuna fishing boat some 700 kilometres (435 miles) off the Somali coast on Saturday, in a sign the pirates are moving further out to sea to evade military patrols in coastal shipping areas.

Source: www.sabanews.net

Balance of power: West v East

World dominant is in question. West, namely, US, EU, and Canada are on one side, East-namely, Russia, and China, are on the other front, where India is increasingly aligning itself with Russia.

The breakup of USSR was one of the US's major foreign policy achievements. Now, the lone Russia with Chechnya, is not much of a threat. Tibet, and Xinjiang can give long term headache to China, but breaking up Russia and China is very difficult. But India.

Powerful India is a growing trouble for the West, and the solution is breaking up India.

India is very similar to Yugoslavia; the 30% of the Hindi speaking are dominating the rest of India.

Let it be clear: India was never a friend of the USA. India and the Indians are opportunists. When USSR was in downturn, India opened its economy (supposedly), and the West fell for it; started to invest in India heavily. India's economy started wheeling. As soon India realizes that it can stand on its legs, and the re-emergence of Russia, it renewed its existing tie with Russia.

Without divulging in detail, any-one can see the trouble India is in: Kashmir, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, not to mention Nagaland, Maoist rebels, etc. The new trouble for the India is the West-created hub of India's Silicon Valley (Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka). I prefer to call this new dimension, a Dravidian Federation. These four states have much to gain from siding with the West than sticking with North India.

NSC- National Security Council, should plant the seed now. The US should support separatism in the Indian Sub-continent. There is a long running civil war in Sri Lanka. North-East of Sri Lanka is only 18-miles from India. A new Tamil Eelam will fuel the existing separatism in India. West should take this opportunity to support the creation of Tamil Eelam.

India will never allow a separate independent state for Tamils to be carved out from Sri Lanka. India knows well that the new state behind its backyard is the beginning of the end of India. India will do all it can to prevent a threat from the Tamils of Sri Lanka. It will provide all necessary supports to Sri Lankan state. In 2000, when Tamil Tigers were about to drive out the Sri Lankan Army out of Jaffna peninsula, India offered its Navy. Currently, the military ties between India and Sri Lanka are growing. Sri Lanka is fighting India's war in the North-East.

India wanted to dominate South Asia. After the war with Pakistan over Bangladesh, India determined to have Sri Lanka, and Maldives under its control, so it would deny Pakistani access to Sri Lankan bases. It started training Tamil-militants of Sri Lanka in the 1980s, and that let to the 1987 Indo-Lanka peace accord. India sent 125,000+ strong army to Sri Lanka under the cover of IPKF (Indian Peace Keeping Force). Indians were able to capture 95% of the Tamil-homeland. IPKF could have eliminated LTTE's leadership long time ago, but still was "fighting", so it can stay in forever.

While India was in Sri Lanka, its next move was hatching: Maldives. Indian army trained 60 Tamil mercenaries belonging to the left-wing People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), one of the five major Sri Lankan Tamil guerrilla groups of that time. These Indian backed mercenaries were sent to Maldives, and they attempted to overthrow the President Gayoom regime on November 3, 1988. Waiting Indian Paratroopers "intervened in time" to help Maldives.

India was successful in establishing a permanent base in the Maldives, but in Sri Lanka. India thought it could have a permanent base, but with the help of then Sri Lankan President Premadasa, LTTE denied a base too. India lost the war to the LTTE, and finally withdrew in 1990.

India's Southern Naval Command (SNC), headquartered in Cochin (Kochi) is ready to cross Palk Strait to Sri Lanka with a moment notice. This was evident how ready Indian Navy was, when Tsunami stuck Sri Lanka in December, 2004.

Here is the Indian version of the mission:

"INS Sandhayak, a survey ship, and INS Sukanya, an Offshore Patrol Vessel, arrived at Trincomalee on 27 Dec. Three truck loads of dry provisions and medical supplies were handed over to the district government agent and the Sri Lankan Navy. One Medical Officer was deputed to the Trincomalee civil hospital. The balance of the medical team, along with Sri Lankan Navy, set up medical camps at outlying areas around Trincomalee."

"INS Sharda, an Offshore Patrol Vessel, arrived on 27 Dec 04 off Galle harbour. The ship established contact with the Sri Lankan Navy Detachment and launched an inflatable boat with divers and helicopter for reconnaissance. The ship undertook setting up of medical camps ashore in consultation with the local authorities. Barges were arranged by the Sri Lankan Navy for offloading relief supplies supplies from Sharda."

"INS Sutlej, a survey ship, arrived off Galle on 28 Dec 04. The ship carried out sounding (measuring of depth) of the channel using the ship's boats and providing assistance for salvage and clearance/survey of channel to render it safe for navigation."

"One naval Dornier will medical teams and medical supplies landed at Colombo at 1917 h on 26 Dec 04. The medical teams have been deputed to the District Hospital at Hambantota and are attending to the casualties."

"A second naval Dornier sortie was launched from Kochi on 27 Dec 04 with 400 kg of medical supplies and 300 litres of water embarked onboard. The aircraft landed at Colombo (Ratmalana Airbase) at 1900 h. The aircraft returned to Kochi after disembarking relief supplies."

India was busy securing Sri Lankan harbors with more than five Navy ships and Aircraft carriers, and the only international airport with its Air Force, while its own people from Tamil Nadu was to get any sort of relieve from its government.

India went one step further in Trinco. It not only prevented the US Navy from entering Trinco harbor first, but also made it off-limit to all other foreign militaries by blocking the entrance to the harbor. The West's anger was first felt, when Italian Navy, a G7 member, and an US ally, made direct contact with the LTTE. Sri Lankan government was irked. The Government has reportedly rebuked the Italian Embassy in Colombo for sending humanitarian relief directly to the affected Tamils and has made it clear that all governmental assistance from other countries should be routed to the Tamils through it.

Then, the US and India were dating, a sort. It was also the post 911, where all the insurgencies were wrongly labeled as terrorists. India used this opportunity to have its agenda advanced in Sri Lanka. India wanted to suppress the insurgency and separatism on the Island. After the fall of well fortified Elephant-Pass Sri Lankan Army garrison to the LTTE, India was convinced, if no intervention, LTTE would achieve its goal, Tamil Eelam soon. It hurriedly crafted, now infamous, Cease Fire Agreement – CFA, between the LTTE and Sri Lankan Government. India skillfully netted the West to agree to the "United Sri Lanka" concept, and to the CFA. You might still hear the "United Sri Lanka" song from the West, time to time… it was the Indian lyrics.

The CIA equivalent of the Indian agency called, Research and Analytical Wing, RAW, started carrying out its plan, before and after the CFA was singed in 2002. First victim was the Col. Shankar, head of Tamil Tiger Air Force. This was achieved by its Tamil mercenaries now working with the Lankan Army. RAW also played a crucial role in splitting the then Eastern commander, Col. Karuna from the mainstream Tamils.

RAW systematically almost got Tamil Tigers under its wrap. About 12 Tamil ships were intercepted by the Navy. In some cases, the US willingly or unwillingly supported Indian goal, and supported the Lankan Navy. This was the worst-time for the Tamil Tigers. Most of the weapon smuggling rings were dismantled. At least one of the Tiger Aircrafts which was carrying weapons, was shot down, probably by Indian Navy off Mannar. Mean time, East was re-captured by the Army after 14 years. The US, France, UK, and Canada started arresting Tamil-Tiger sympathizers in mass. Every single Tamil, living in the West, was in the danger of stamped as Terrorist. No just, but politics that governed Tamil issue. Many innocent Tamils were also arrested, and their community TV-Networks was shutdown in Europe. Everything was going the way, RAW wanted.

Tamil Tigers maintains its power by strategically withdrawn from the East, so its man-power is not lost. Tigers are now more powerful than they were ever before. Arms they stockpiled are enough to sustain major battles. Tigers may lack modern weaponry to deal with the growing threat from the Russian made MIGs, and the Navies. This doesn't deter its power. Tamils are currently defending the Wanni stronghold fiercely. India is patrolling both countries' coasts, and waiting Delhi's order to land in Mannar, Trinco, Kankesanthurai, and Point Pedro.

This is where the current Sri Lankan conflict is, a stalemate a sort. This would go either way, West or East. It all depends on Tamil Eelam. If the West is succeed in creating a nation at the backyard of India, then, it can weaken India, and still dominate the world.

To prevent India from militarily intervene, during the next stage of battles, the voice of Tamils in India should be encouraged towards the grievances of Tamils of Lanka. There is a silent majority of LTTE sympathizers in Tamil Nadu. These people should speak up, protest against the military intervention, and aids to the genocidal Lankan State. All Tamil Nadu Politians must come together for the Tamils. All actors, movie directors, and other public figures take the cause to the streets all over Tamil Nadu, and beyond. DMK must pressure the central government. Failing to do so, must result in the next new front in Tamil Nadu politics. The new party must be supporting the Tamil Eelam. DMK has a final chance to do something while in power. It is time to get rid of Brahmins from Tamil Nadu politics altogether. All the anti-Tamil figures in Tamil Nadu are Brahmins.

Most of the Indian politians are corrupt, and rich nations should use this weakness as well. Here are some anti-Tamils from the South: Jayalalithaa Jayaram, Subramaniam Swamy, Cho Ramasamy, Narasimhan Ram, B. Raman, S. Gopal, Dr. S. Chandrasekharan, C.S. Kuppuswamy, M K Narayanan, to name a few.

The West should increase clandestine ties with the Tamil Tigers further, keeping in mind India is watching. Kosovo type solution is time consuming, and India won't let it happen.

The West should provide military and political assistance to Tamil Tigers. All Tamil political prisoners should be released from the US, Canada, and the EU confinements. West should start de-proscribing the LTTE, and elevate them as Freedom Fighters. West should create a conduit for the creation of Tamil Eelam. West should recognize Tamil Eelam within a year. It is a signal to India that it should fall in line with the West, or else…

There is no doubt that the US policy makers are also busy drafting policies for ever changing world. South Indian industries can also be used to weaken the Central, in many ways. Not all ideas and plans can be spelled out for general public, how India can be broken.

Source: http://globalpolitician.com

Maldives' commander of national defence force meets Sri Lanka Army Chief

Commander of the Maldives National Defence Force, Major General Mohamed Zahir met with Army Chief Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka at the army headquarters in Colombo this morning.

Sri Lanka Armoured Corps offered a guard of honour and welcomed the Maldives’ defence chief.

The two commanders held discussions over the security situations of the two countries. Maldives’ commander expressed his gratitude to army chief for training Maldives’ cadets even when Sri Lanka army is fully engaged in a war against terrorism.

Source: colombopage.com

India calls for military alliance at naval summit

India called for an alliance of navies to boost security at sea at its first naval summit Thursday with nations that have a stake in the busy maritime lanes of the Indian Ocean.

Twenty-six representatives of navies from countries including Australia, Egypt, France and Sri Lanka are attending the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), seen by experts as an effort by New Delhi to assert its strategic presence.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, launching the two-day event, said regional cooperation would help combat piracy and terrorism.

"Recent years have seen a rise in crimes such as terrorism, smuggling, including of narcotics, arms and weapons, and piracy and robbery," Singh said.

"The perpetrators of these crimes are well-organised and well-funded transnational crime syndicates who take full advantage of the vastness of the oceans. The need for cooperation among the navies of the region in preventing such crimes is therefore of paramount interest," he said.

"India remains committed to an Indian Ocean that is stable and peaceful," the prime minister said, calling for "the freedom of the seas for all nations... to deepen trade and economic links."

Indian naval chief admiral Sureesh Mehta called for a loose military alliance of regional navies to keep the busy sea lanes secure.

"The threats of intra-state turmoil as well as a variety of security threats that are short of state-on-state conflict, remain a grim reality, presenting a significant risk to peace and stability," Mehta told the summit.

India has offered an unofficial naval blockade of the waters around Sri Lanka and the Maldives to prevent Tamil guerrillas from smuggling arms onto the island to fuel their battle for a homeland.

"The threat from malevolent non-state actors presents a clear and present danger to not just one or some, but to all of us," Mehta said, without directly referring to the Sri Lankan conflict.

"(However) it is critical to ensure that whatever we plan and do flows from a broad consensus, with political backing, maritime commitment, and naval resolve," the chief of India's 137-ship navy added.

India during the 2004 tsunami spurned an unsolicited US offer to provide help to the thousands of victims and instead sent its own naval ships to Sri Lanka and Indonesia in a sign of its expanding reach.

Last September, India invited Australia, Japan, Singapore and the US for major joint naval exercises off the Andaman islands -- raising eyebrows in Pakistan and China.

The symposium will also focus on the war in Sri Lanka, notably the Tamil Tigers' continued weapons smuggling, diplomats said.

"This critical military crisis highlights the need for synergy among navies to keep the Indian Ocean free of pirates and gun-runners," a New Delhi-based diplomat said.

Uday Bhaskar, a former Indian naval commander, said the summit was a clear "attempt by India to enhance the credibility of its navy as a maritime power."

The summit will wind up on Friday with a closed-door conclave of the naval chiefs in the Indian seaside resort of Goa.

Source: AFP

US Department of Defense announcement include maldives jail

The Department of Defense announced today the transfer of ten detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to Saudi Arabia. These detainees were determined to be eligible for transfer following a comprehensive series of review processes.

The transfer is a demonstration of the United States’ desire not to hold detainees any longer than necessary. It also underscores the processes put in place to assess each individual and make a determination about their detention while hostilities are ongoing – an unprecedented step in the history of warfare.

The Department of Defense has determined – through its comprehensive review processes - that more than 60 detainees at Guantanamo are eligible for transfer or release. Departure of these detainees is subject to ongoing discussions between the United States and other nations.

Since 2002, approximately 500 detainees have departed Guantanamo for other countries including Albania, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Belgium, Denmark, Egypt, France, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Maldives, Mauritania, Morocco, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom and Yemen.

Source:

Marines teach martial arts to Maldivians

Six Marine Corps Martial Arts Program instructors and one instructor trainer from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) recently trained soldiers from the 20th Special Task Force, Maldives National Defence Force, here.

The MNDF soldiers from the island nation got a rare opportunity to build their martial arts skills and warrior ethos by learning from Marine martial arts instructors Dec. 15-22.
Sgt. Gustavo Terrazas, a MCMAP instructor trainer and Santa Ana, Calif. native, was tasked with tailoring an intensive martial arts course for 60 MNDF soldiers.

“I had to design a training schedule that would give them the most tools in the least amount of time,” he said.

Terrazas said he started with a tan belt base and added selected gray and green belt techniques throughout. To train their mental discipline, Terrazas taught MNDF instructors how to build a soldier’s warrior ethos.

“One thing that makes MCMAP successful is the three disciplines it contains,” Terrazas said. “They are mental, character and physical discipline, also called the MCMAP synergy. The only way to build a complete warrior is to practice all three disciplines.”
In addition to basic throws, punches and kicks, the students were introduced to boxing, pugil sticks and a cohesion room, an intense circuit training course that focuses on team work and unit cohesion.

“It was a new experience fighting the way (Marines) do,” said Sgt. Yoosuf Rasheed, a 20th STF instructor who attended the course. “The intensity of the fighting adds a different dimension to the training. The students said they found the fights realistic and gained confidence in themselves.”

The Marine instructors also threw some drills at the soldiers to challenge their abilities and push their mental and physical limits. One such drill was the cohesion room.

“The purpose of the cohesion room was to build unity within a squad and for the soldiers to be able to fight in a combat engagement when completely fatigued,” Terrazas said.
Working as a team, each individual squad had to complete a certain amount of time in the room before they could leave. If one member did not complete a specific exercise, more time was added.

“The cohesion room was a great experience and really built our mental strength,” Rasheed said. “The room worked and we really came together to do our best.”
Terrazas said he received positive feedback from the instructors at the conclusion of the training and that he is confident that they gained valuable knowledge for future MNDF soldiers.

“I know this training is going to help them,” Terrazas said. “All the NCO’s I’ve talked to already have plans to implement things we have taught them into their training.”

**For more information about the 11th MEU (SOC) visit their website at http://www.usmc.mil/11thmeu.

Source: http://www.marines.mil

India to give anti-terror lessons to Maldives

With the ever-growing spectre of terrorism looming large over the globe, more and more countries now want to learn from the Indian Army's substantial experience in dealing with militancy, insurgency and sub-conventional operations.

The 1.13-million Army, the third largest in the world, will hold as many as 10 joint military exercises with countries ranging from Maldives, Seychelles, Thailand and Mongolia to Russia, UK, China and, of course, the US, before the end of this year.

The thrust in most of these exercises will be counter-terrorism, both in "urban and rural settings". Apart from building "interoperability", the endeavour also provides India with the opportunity to engage constructively with nations in Central and East Asia as well as those in the Indian Ocean Region.

At the same time, despite the banner of protest raised by the Left, exercises with the US constitute a major chunk of this "encounter" with foreign armies. The Army alone has held around 20 joint exercises with the US over the last five years, with their names ranging from "Balance Iroquois" and "Yudh Abhyas" to "Shatrujeet" and "Vajra Prahar".

In 2007 itself, Indian and US armies are slated to hold five joint exercises. If the navies and air forces are also taken into account, almost 50 Indo-US military exercises have been held in the last five-six years.

Incidentally, the Army's elite Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS) at Vairengte in Mizoram is a big hit among foreign armies for its unique facilities, which promise to teach them how to "fight the guerrilla like a guerrilla". And a team of US marines will be back at CIJWS for another exercise between August 25 and September 15.

"Conventional wars as an instrument of state policy have become less relevant today. Sub-conventional operations are emerging as the predominant form of warfare," said a senior officer.

"With India having fought terrorism in J&K and North-East for decades, foreign armies are very keen to learn from our experience, especially after the 9/11 terrorist strikes," he added.

Even countries like Seychelles, Maldives, Thailand and Mongolia are keen to imbibe counter-terrorism skills. The exercise with the Royal Thai Army, named "Maitree", for instance, will be held at Ramgarh from September 1-19 to "share experiences in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism" as well as improve interoperability.

Source: The Times of India

Maldives 'not certain' on trawler

The identities of the arrested foreign nationals three days ago off Maldives seas are yet to be determined, authorities in Maldives said.

Maldives government spokesman Mohamed Hussein Sharif told BBC Tamil Service that one person, identified as Simon, is an Indian national probably from South Indian state of Kerala.

Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), together with the police are conducting investigations to verify the identities of other four people captured after sinking their boat, the spokesman said.

"We don't know for certain as yet whether it was a Sri Lankan trawler or whether the persons who are currently in the custody are Sri Lankans," he added.

Sri Lankan detectives

He confirmed that Sri Lankan detectives are also taking part in the investigations.

"The Sri Lankan authorities contacted our foreign ministry and they were given due permission to participate," Mohamed Hussein Sharif said.

Sharif who earlier suggested the arrested were Tamil Tigers told BBC Tamil Service on Sunday that Simon's allegations that other four are Sri Lankan Tamils led to speculations in the media.

Sri Lankan authorities were concerned after media reports that alleged they were LTTE members.

'Arms smuggling'

A Maldivian coastguard vessel has opened fire on a suspected boat and arrested five foreign nationals on board on Thursday.

"They were definitely intruding Maldivian waters but their motive is yet to be determined," the spokesman added.

The chief spokesman for the Maldives government Sharif said on Thursday that nearly 12-hour stand-off between its coastguard forces and the suspected rebel boat happened near an atoll, several hundred nautical miles south of the main archipelago.

He said it may have foiled an attempt by the rebels to smuggle arms to Sri Lanka.

The five people on board the boat were being questioned, the spokesman said.

The Tamil Tigers military spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiraiyan has denied the rebels were involved in the incident.

Sea clashes

"We are not operating in that area," Ilanthiraiyan told the Reuters news agency from a rebel base in the north of Sri Lanka.

"These guys are not our people."

Earlier this month, a number of rebels were killed in a sea battle with the Sri Lankan navy off Sri Lanka's north-eastern coast.

The navy said it sank two Tamil Tiger boats, part of a flotilla of 26 rebel vessels, and killed at least 10 rebels.

The Tamil Tigers are fighting for an independent state in the north and east.

Clashes at sea and on land are now an almost daily occurrence. Both sides say they still respect the ceasefire and are responding to the other side's aggression.

Source: BBC Sinhala

Maldives probes Sri Lanka LTTE suspects

The Sri Lankan government is closely liaising with Maldivian authorities in the interrogation of five LTTE suspects who were on board an ammunition laden trawler that was destroyed by the Maldivian coast guard on Thursday morning, Foreign Ministry officials said.

The men are suspected to have been transporting weapons to the Tamil Tigers, according to reports from Male.

The trawler had been fired upon by the Maldivian coastguards in the Maldivian waters. Five of the men had jumped over board and were picked up by the Maldivian authorities later on, Foreign Ministry officials confirmed.

The suspected trawler flying the Sri Lankan ensign had allegedly fired upon a Maldivian fishing vessel and had been pursued by the Maldivian coastguards who had ordered the trawler to stop.

The trawler had ignored the orders and started firing at the coastguards which lead to the retaliatory attack.

News reports from Maldives said the five crew members were found to be LTTE cadres after interrogation.

Investigations are in progress to ascertain whether the trawler bearing the name “Sri Krishna” is the same vessel that was reported missing by the Indian authorities since March 12 along with 12 Indian fishermen, reports from Male and Colombo said.

The Minivan news Agency that operates from the Maldivian capital Male quoted the

Director General of the Coastguard, Colonel Zakaria Mansoor, confirming at a press briefing on Thursday that the men were involved in smuggling weapons.

“Several large explosions also suggest to us that the vessel was carrying a considerable load of weapons and explosives,” he said.

Source: Lanka Every Thing

Missing the boat: " Not all boats are tigers, but all captured ones are "

Recent stories about boats captured by both Indian and Sri Lankan military authorities are so dubious that we have piled up several convincing jokes on all the stealth stories of these captures and the destruction. Readers have a recollection of the recent increase in the so-called 'captured' and 'drowned' LTTE boats on the mainland as well as in the island's international waters. The claims stating that the boats belong to LTTE are quite hilarious.

In this article we produce some obvious questions that the news reporting agencies ignored. Do all of these boats belong to LTTE? In the following we found some interesting facts.

The anti-Sri Lankan Tamil newspaper, HINDU, reported on May 16th, 2007 the following:

Sri Lankan boat seized
Staff Reporter - The arrested include two Sri Lankan nationals RAMANATHAPURAM:

The `Q' Branch on Wednesday arrested six persons, including two Sri Lankan nationals, and seized a Sri Lankan boat with 50 bundles of beedis worth Rs.2.75 lakh and a van. Two 25 HP engines and another 1.5 HP motor engine were also seized. `Q' branch Inspector P.

Thiagarajan said they were arrested while trying to load the bundles onto the boat at Valangapuri near Thamaraikulam. Xavier (33) and Roshanth (23) of Pesalai in Sri Lanka, Gandhi (33) of Ponkulam, owner of the van, Baskaran (31) of Servaikara Oorani and Selladurai (23) of Thamarai Oorani in Ramanathapuram were among those arrested. They purchased beedi bundles from a shop owned by Zia-ul-Hag (47) of Ramanathapuram, who was also arrested.

How come the above boat captured by the so-called Q-branch does not belong to LTTE? This was the only time in the history of the HINDU newspaper that they reported on captured boats belonging to Sri Lanka and not to LTTE.

Smelling a rat in the story, our staff officers called the HINDU newspaper to clarify the obvious and the Hindu newspaper refused to discuss the matter.

So was LTTE smuggling beedi bundles to its war-weary military officials? If not, how come the non-LTTE boat stories are always written by a staff reporter of the HINDU newspaper?

The answer reveals some interesting facts from the HINDU newspaper and other news agencies.

We counted more than 75 news reports on the so-called mid-sea battles encountered by both Sri Lankan and Indian military officials with LTTE during the last one year period.

One wonders: is LTTE really into the business of boat making rather than a self-determined fighting machine against a terror state?

And very recently, on May 17th, 2007 the news was buzzing again and this time the tiny coastguard of Maldives swung into action.

The Associate Press states, "The Maldives coast guard Thursday sank a boat suspected of ferrying arms for separatist Tamil Tiger rebels in neighboring Sri Lanka - and captured five men", a government spokesman said.

Maldives, an archipelago of 1,200 coral islands, is located 400 nautical miles (740 nautical kilometers) southwest of Sri Lanka - But before long the story takes another turn.

Reuters reports: "However, one man who threw himself overboard before the clash and surrendered spoke the south Indian language Malayalam and not Tamil, and officials were treating the alleged rebel link with caution."

So one wonders: are all the boat stories really true or not? Should the news agencies report on something that has no news value rather than just a rumor, should the news agencies ask the obvious questions from these so-called governments which are claiming victory over sea battles?

What are these vessels doing? At any given time there are thousands of marine vessels moving in and around the globe in international waters and the ones that are sunk are always LTTE vessels.

And the pathetic news agencies reported it as if they were news worthy and therefore they, too, profit from making news.

All in all, if you believe the tall tales from these news agencies, one thing is clear: not all boats are Tigers but the ones destroyed and captured are.

Now that is no coincidence. Interestingly, during the arms surrender by the militant groups soon after the 1987 Indo-Sri Lankan accord, the late President Ranasinghe Premedasa asked the obvious, "How come we have so many weapons here and how did they all come here?" And now we know they all came from the sunken ships down in the deep ocean.

Source: Tamil Canadian

'LTTE' vessel sunk off Maldives was from Kerala

A trawler which the Maldivian Coast Guard sunk on Thursday, on suspicion that it was an LTTE gun-runner, was registered in Kerala, the Sri Lankan Navy's spokesman Com DKP Dassanayake told Hindustan Times on Friday.

The vessel bearing the name Sri Krishna ( registration number KFO 7339 ALP 2749) had set sail from Kollam (Quilon) in Kerala on March 7, Dassanayake said.

The Indian Coast Guard had last seen the vessel on March 12, near the India-Sri Lanka maritime boundary off Pamban near Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu. It reappeared on Wednesday May 16, south of the Maldives chain of islands. Trouble arose with it fired on a Maldivian fishing boat and invited the attention of the Maldivian Coast Guard vessel Huravee. After a 12-hour stand off, the trawler was sunk early on Thursday.

Four of the nine-member crew were captured, one surrendered, and four were killed, reports said. The man who surrendered was Simon Soza, a Malayali, the vessel's engineer, Dassanayake said. The others were apparently Tamils.

The suspicion that Sri Krishna was a gun-runner for the LTTE arose because of the kind of resistance the crew offered and also the explosions which could be heard as it sank. Reports said that the vessel, which started off as an innocent deep sea fishing trawler, was hijacked by the LTTE to do some gun-running for it.

There is a suspicion in diplomatic circles that the vessel was to rendezvous with an ocean going LTTE arms vessel in the high seas off south Maldives, and take on board a part of the lethal cargo for delivery in Sri Lanka. This could be the reason why the engineer of the vessel, the Malayali Simon Soza, had jumped ship and surrendered to the Maldivians, it is said.

Maldivian fears

However, the Maldivian authorities are reluctant to say, at this point of time at least, that the vessel was an LTTE gun runner.

"We are now treating this with caution, because the man (who surrendered) was speaking Malayalam and not Tamil," the chief Maldivian government spokesman, Mohammad Shareef, told media on Thursday.

Diplomatic sources said that there could be a worry that tourism, the Maldivian economy's mainstay, may be badly hit if it is known the world over that the most peaceful and idyllic archipelago in the Indian Ocean has become a rendezvous for terrorists.

India's worries

It is learnt that thorough investigations are going on in the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India to get to the bottom of the matter and nip any terrorist activity in the area in the bud. India, which has a strong and long standing relationship with the Maldives, does not want to see the Maldivian economy collapse on account of any terrorist activity.

Earlier in 1988, the Indian Navy had intercepted a vessel carrying Sri Lankan Tamil mercenaries who were trying to seize power from President Mohammad Gayoom and hand it over to some leaders of the opposition.

Sri Lankan view

The Sri Lankan media has already announced that that the vessel was an LTTE gun runner. The media and the government, are keen to show that the incident is another proof that the LTTE has been increasingly using South India to smuggle in arms for its operations in the Sri Lankan North-East.

Sri Lankan naval sources say that smuggling of war-like material from Tamil Nadu has increased in the past six months and cite instances in which the Tamil Nadu police and the Indian Coast Guard had captured such material and made some arrests. It is pointed out that the LTTE had killed non-cooperating Indian fishermen in March and had also abducted 12 persons, according to the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police D Mukherji.

The LTTE, however, has denied any role in the killings and abductions of Tamil Nadu fishermen. And on the incident in the Maldives, its military spokesman Rasaiah Ilanthirayan said: "These guys are not ours."

Source: Hindustan Times

Maldives destroys boat suspected of carrying LTTE arms

The Maldives coast guard yesterday sank a boat suspected of ferrying arms for separatist Tamil Tiger rebels in neighboring Sri Lanka and captured five men, a government spokesman said.

Maldivian fishermen spotted the boat on Wednesday evening and gave chase after believing it was a fishing boat poaching in their waters, Maldives government spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef said.

When the boat's crew opened fire on the fishermen, they informed the Maldivian coast guard, which later sank it after a 10-hour stand off, Shareef said.

One of the men captured later said the boat had weapons and ammunition aboard, Shareef said, adding the five were being interrogated.

Maldives, an archipelago of 1,200 coral islands, is located 400 nautical miles (740km) southwest of Sri Lanka.

Tamil Tiger spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan denied the rebels' involvement.

"We have nothing to do with this and they are not our people," he said by telephone.

In 1988 a former Tamil separatist group based in Sri Lanka, the People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam, attempted to overthrow President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and seize power in the Maldives for a group of local dissidents. In return, the group was to receive a base on the archipelago.

However, Maldives security forces, with help from India, defeated the coup.

The Tamil group later gave up arms and entered mainstream Sri Lankan politics.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels have continued to fight for more than two decades to create a separate homeland for the country's 3.1 million ethnic minority Tamils.

Source: Taipei Times

MNDF says sinks suspected vessel in Maldives Water

The Maldives coast guard opened fire on and sank a vessel carrying suspected Tamil Tiger rebels on Thursday after a 12-hour standoff at sea in their southern territorial waters, the government said.

However one man who threw himself overboard before the clash and surrendered spoke the south Indian language Malayalam and not Tamil, and officials were treating the alleged rebel link with caution.

"We have sunk the vessel. We have captured the five people aboard," Foreign Minister Ahmed Shaheed told Reuters by telephone from the Maldivian capital of Male.

A government spokesman said one of the captured men said four people he believed to be Tamil Tigers had boarded his 80 ft (25 metre) fishing trawler at sea and loaded it with guns and mortar bombs.

He said there was confusion over an initial coastguard report that the man had identified himself as a Tamil Tiger.

"We are now treating this with caution, because the man was speaking Malayalam and not Tamil," said chief government spokesman Mohamed Shareef.

Sri Lanka's Navy has sunk several boats and trawlers in recent months suspected of trafficking weaponry for the Tigers across the Palk Strait that separates Sri Lanka and India.

Maldivians are mindful of an abortive coup attempt in 1988 by dissidents backed by Tamil paramilitaries from Sri Lanka, which ended in the Indian Navy chasing and sinking a vessel the plotters had tried to escape on with hostages.

The Tamil Tigers, fighting for an independent state in neighbouring Sri Lanka, were not immediately available to comment on the incident, which took place several hundred nautical miles off the south of the Maldives archipelago.

Source: Reuters