As the operation continued, the military say, LTTE’s elite Charles Anthony Brigade launched an assault on Army positions at Pansalgodella on Kantalai-Seruwila road on 29 April killing three soldiers and wounding nine. Heavy fighting broke out at Kadalkaraichenai as the Army advanced south of Muthur. Hundreds of villagers fled and remained in jungles without food for three days.
Further south, troops also moved from Eechilampathai to Verugal on Trinco-Batticaloa border. Reports say the Tigers retreated into their Vaharai stronghold in Batticaloa District, blasting a ferry crossing linking the two districts.
The Army imposed restrictions on food into Thoppur, five miles south-east of Muthur, to prevent food falling into Tiger hands. Currently, a person is allowed to take only five kilos of rice into the village. Villagers who were driven out of Upparu last month by the Army and currently living in Alankerni, staged a protest fast on 23 April and have threatened to fast unto death if they are not allowed to return to their village.
Over 200 refugees from the Vanni demonstrated before the Trincomalee government secretariat on 6 April demanding to be sent to Jaffna. Government Regional Secretary V Velum Mayilum says there were 1,400 people in Trincomalee in early April waiting to travel to Jaffna. A further 750 arrived from Vavuniya on 8 April. Over 1,000 refugees left for Jaffna on 9 and 12 April. According to a Defence Ministry decision, transport to Jaffna will be available only from Trincomalee and in future no ships will ply from Mannar.
The government is planning to set up a camp near Wilpattu Wildlife Sanctuary south of Mannar to accommodate 20,000 refugees. The camp is proposed on Mannar mainland rather than Mannar Island, to facilitate transport of Jaffna refugees to Trincomalee. Tamil party PLOTE leader N Manickathasan says airlifting the refugees to Jaffna will be cheaper than maintaining the camp and warns that such a camp will help LTTE infiltration into southern areas. The Tigers are said to have established bases deep in the Wilpattu jungle.
Thousands of refugees fleeing the fighting in the Vanni continue to arrive at the Uyilankulam Army checkpoint where only 500 people a day are allowed into Mannar. A young woman was crushed to death in early April as crowds rushed to the checkpoint.
On Mannar Island, 700 refugees from the Pesalai camp staged a protest fast before the government secretariat in early April and submitted a petition to Government Agent V Visvalingam, demanding to be sent to Jaffna.