Vavuniya attack on 09.09.2008
Vavuniya attack on 09.09.2008
On 09.09.2008, the Karumpulikal, supported by the Air Team and Colonel Kittu’s artillery, had infiltrated the Vanni Joint Force Headquarters and caused massive destruction to the Sri Lankan troops.
The attack by the LTTE on the Joseph Army Base, which was in the part of the city in Vavuniya, which included the Vanni Regional Army Headquarters and the Air Force Base, shocked the military.
The attack by the LTTE’s Karumpulikal commandos on the Vanni Army Headquarters in the early hours of last Tuesday (09), accompanied by bombing by the LTTE’s air force and heavy artillery fire by the Kittu’s artillery, shook Vavuniya itself.
On Monday midnight with that darkness, a team of Karumpulikal commandos prepared to move out from their hideouts south of Vavuniya town.
Wearing the uniform of the Sri Lanka Air Force, a black cloth tied around their heads like that of Special Forces commandos, the Karumpuli commandos began to move stealthily like a Sri Lankan Air Force patrol.
The Vanni Army Headquarters and the Air Force Base were separated by a single fence, with only one road in the middle. That road was also closed to public traffic. The southern part of the base was a forested area surrounding the Erapperiyakulam.
Karumpuli commandos from the Vanni Army Headquarters secretly entered through this southern fence. At 3.05 am, the Karumpuli commandos launched the attack following an order received via satellite phone from a special operations unit of the LTTE in the Vanni.
The brigade headquarters of the Special Forces is also located in the Vanni Army Headquarters complex. They had to cross it to enter the Air force base. The distance between the Special Forces Headquarters and the Air force base is only 200 meters.
The main targets of the LTTE who entered were the telecommunications tower of the Vanni Army Headquarters, the two-dimensional radar observation station of the “Indra” series at the air force base, the telecommunications technology research station, and the anti-aircraft artillery positions.
There were no aircraft stationed at the Vavuniya air force base at night. The LTTE would have known this very well. The Karumpulikal had to enter the air force base past the Special Operations Headquarters. But the Special Forces commandos were kept on high alert.
Since it was not possible to enter the air force base without fighting, the Karumpuli commandos started a fight with the Special Forces commandos.
The Karumpulikal approached the air force base’s boundary fence while fighting. At that time, Colonel Kittu, with the aim of diverting the attention of the soldiers and paving the way for the Karumpulikal, opened fire on the artillery. The brigade also launched an attack.
The LTTE’s 130mm artillery, stationed at three different locations in the Puliyankulam and Semamadu areas beyond Omanthai, began to fire in a barrage of shells. Taking advantage of the opportunity, some of the Karumpulikal approached the air base.
One of the Karumpuli commandos was armed with an MP MG machine gun, two with RPGs, one with a 40mm grenade launcher, and six with T56 rifles. They also had Bangalore topiaries to cross minefields and break obstacles.
When the Karumpulikal reached the air base, they encountered further resistance from there.
Meanwhile, while still at the border fence, one of the Karumpulikal targeted the telecommunications tower with an ARPG. Another targeted the air force control tower. Following this, the Karumpulikal attacked the Telecommunications Technology Research Center and the “Indira” Radar Surveillance Center with RPGs and grenade launchers. The MPMG gun was targeting key targets from time to time and was also dealing with the resistance of the Special Forces and the Air Force.
At that time, the Vanni Army Headquarters was on high alert, and the specially trained Special Forces Commandos were stationed for security. As soon as this fight began, they tried to surround and defeat the small number of Karumpulikal.
Meanwhile, the artillery attack that the Kittu Artillery Regiment was continuously conducting began to intensify.
The freedom fighters continued the attack by frequently shifting their artillery positions to obscure the radars that detected the location of the artillery among the troops.
In this situation, the third field of the Freedom fighters Opened. At exactly 3.26 am, the surveillance equipment of the Vavuniya radar station recorded the flight of an unidentified object in the airspace over Mullaithivu. The radar station officers immediately understood that it was an LTTE aircraft. The LTTE had already carried out an air attack during the attack on the Anuradhapuram air force base.
The officer in charge of the operations office of the Vavuniya air force base, Squad Run Leader Sanjaya Adhikari, was on duty. The officers at the radar station informed him of the flight of the LTTE aircraft. He immediately informed the Director of the Operations Headquarters of the Air Force Headquarters, Air Marshal Harsha Abeywickrama.
In this situation, the Air Force Operations Office, which had been alerted to the Katunayake air force base, alerted the central positions in all parts of the country. At 3.31 am, the flight of another aircraft was also recorded on the radar in Vavuniya.
Within the next 5 minutes, the LTTE planes touched the airspace over Vavuniya.
At that time, all the artillery and guns in the army and air force bases and camps in Vavuniya and the surrounding areas began to fire shells into the air.
While the army’s bombs were searching for the LTTE planes and tearing a line in the sky, the LTTE planes identified the positions they were to attack and dropped four bombs in succession.
One of the bombs dropped fell on the residence of Colonel Nirmal Dharmaratne, the Brigade Commander of the Special Forces at the Vanni Force Headquarters. He was on leave at the time. The bomb did not explode because it was buried in the damp ground.
All the bombs dropped by the LTTE aircraft fell in the heart of the Vanni Force Headquarters. One bomb damaged the Indira radar observation post. Another damaged the officers’ quarters and the canteen. Another exploded in the Vanni Army headquarters building. The LTTE planes circled Vavuniya for 6 minutes and then separated in different directions. One went towards Iranaimadu. The other went towards Mullaithivu.
In this situation, the Director of Operations of the Air Force, Air Marshal Harsha Abeywickrama, ordered the Commanding Officer of the 5th Squadron to dispatch aircraft to intercept and attack the LTTE planes from the Katunayake Air Force Base, which was kept on standby 24 hours a day to deal with the LTTE air attack.
The 5th Squadron of the Air Force had Chinese-made H-7G interceptor fighter jets. The LTTE planes were spotted on radar at 3.34 a.m. on the 8th minute. The E7G interceptors took off at lightning speed. The E7 jets, which reached the Vanni airspace, circled and searched for the LTTE aircraft.
At around 4 am, these aircraft carried out attacks on the Puthukudiyuruppu areas and Iranaimadu. MiG-27 jets from the 12th Squadron were also used for ground attacks. The pilot of an E7 aircraft of the Air Force identified the LTTE aircraft flying in the airspace over Mulliyawala, west of Mullaithivu, and attacked it using an air-to-air missile, the military says. The pilot also saw the LTTE aircraft fall in flames in the Mulliyawala forest area at around 3.56 am.
The army said, that the troops also observed a red and yellow flame falling from the sky at the 59th Division at Kalamunai in Manalaru
The LTTE said that their aircraft had returned safely to the base after carrying out the attack. Meanwhile, even after the LTTE aircraft had completed their attack, fighting continued in the central areas of the Wanni Army Headquarters. Artillery shells were falling continuously. Most of the shells fell on buildings and positions in the Vanni Army Headquarters area, causing damage. The attack continued until 5.30 am.
To repel the LTTE artillery attack, the troops also launched concentrated attacks on the area north of Omanthai using multi-barrel artillery and 130mm, 122mm and 152mm artillery.
During the clashes with the six Black Tigers, four of the “chargers” attached to their bodies The clashes ended only after the attack, which was carried out by detonating so-called bombs, resulted in casualties.
To end the LTTE’s sporadic attacks, the Commander of the Vanni Forces, Major General Jagath Jayasuriya, ordered searches to be launched within the Vanni Army Headquarters area.
Panic was spreading everywhere in Vavuniya town. The movement of civilians was restricted and cordoned off to ensure that none of the LTTE members who had gone on the attack did not escape. During these searches, the bodies of 10 Karumpulikal were found. Their weapons were mostly found empty of bullets and shells.
The army suspects that some of the LTTE members may have escaped. The army had earlier said that 11 bodies of LTTE members had been found. Only 10 bodies were later handed over to the LTTE. The LTTE had released details about the 10 Karumpulikal killed in the attacks, along with a photograph taken with LTTE national leader Prabhakaran, at noon that day.
The military did not rule out the possibility that some of the spies who guided the Karumpulikal may have escaped the attack. Items recovered after the attack included 9mm pistol cartridges. No pistols or other weapons that could be used with these cartridges were recovered from any of the Karumpulikal.
It is suspected that some of the spies may have escaped, as the Freedom fighters would not have brought cartridges for any weapon that was not used in the attack.
The LTTE claimed that the air force’s radar monitoring station, a communications tower, anti-aircraft weapons, a communications technology laboratory, and ammunition depots were destroyed in the attack, and that more than 20 soldiers were killed, and many others were seriously injured.
At the same time, the military reported on one occasion that the radar station escaped with minor damage, and on another occasion that it suffered no damage.
The Army Command announced that 12 army personnel, 1 police constable and 7 air force personnel were killed in the LTTE artillery attack, while 15 soldiers, 9 police and 7 air force personnel were injured. The Army said that the LTTE fired more than 80 130 mm artillery shells during the attack. The large number of 130 mm artillery shells fired by the LTTE indicates that they have sufficient shells in stock.
The physical damage caused to the Army by the LTTE, with the loss of 10 Karumpulikal, is underestimated. The level of stress and pressure on the Army is high.
The three-pronged attack by the LTTE has also created various crises for those who used to say that they could do nothing.
You say you are close to Kilinochchi. But the LTTE have attacked Vavuniya by artillery, land and air and destroyed the radar. They have destroyed the base. The attack by the LTTE was so effective that the UNP raised a question in Parliament that day about what you are doing. Investigations are now being conducted at different levels on how the LTTE came into Vavuniya and carried out the attack and how they came to know the location of the radar station.
There are suspicions that the LTTE may have infiltrated the Yakkavu area of Manalaru through the Nedunkerni Vediwaithakallu and entered through Asikulam, Erapperiyakulam, Mthumrurippu and Samalankulam in Vavuniya. Although the army claims to have repelled this attack, they were able to learn about it only after the LTTE entered the base. This is due to security lapses.
Rather than saying that the security of the army was so weak that the Karumpulikal sent from Vanni entered the Vanni Army Headquarters without any problems, it is more appropriate to say that the LTTE gathered very accurate intelligence and infiltrated safely. The LTTE stated that the radar station, weapons depot, telecommunications tower and attack aircraft returned safely to the base in the attack on the Vanni Command Center.
The radar station located at the Vanni Command Center of the Sri Lankan Army located in Vavuniya has been destroyed by the LTTE. A special Karumpuli team of the LTTE infiltrated the Vavuniya Command Center at 3.05 am today, Tuesday, and attacked and destroyed the radar station.
Following this, the Karumpuli Special Team launched an attack on the Vanni Command Center located in Vavuniya. In support of the Karumpulikal, Colonel Kittu’s artillery regiment has carried out intensive artillery shelling. In addition, the LTTE’s air force has carried out precise air strikes on the command center.
The telecommunications tower, weapons depot, technical laboratory, and anti-aircraft weapons located at the Vanni command center were completely destroyed by the Karumpuli. During this, 20 Sri Lankan soldiers were killed. Many more were injured, according to the official statement of the LTTE.
The LTTE has stated that the aircraft involved in the attack have returned safely to base. The LTTE has stated that the two aircraft that returned after conducting an air strike on the Vanni command center have returned safely to base.
Research report:- Subhadra.
In this attack, 10 Karumpulikal became maaveerar:
Karumpuli Major Anandi
Shanthakumar, Vijayalakshmi
Mannampitiya, Mattacalappu
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Akilan
Rasakulendran Kedaran
Yarlpanam
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Arivuthamil
Vaiyapuri Sasikala
Samayapuram, Vavuniya.
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Elilalagan
Krishnapillai Prabhakaran
Parithihurai, Yarlpanam
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Kanimathi
Thirunavukarasu Daksayini
Neradampan, Poonagari
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Lt. Col. Mathiyalagi
Irathinasamy Lokeswari
Pandyankulam, Mallavi
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Muthunagai
Sivagurunathan Sivarohini
Mugavil Iyakachi,
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Major Nilakaran
Muniyandhi Jeevaraja
Kilinochchi,
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Captain Nimalan
Thavaraja Thavakkumar
Akkaraipattu Amparai,
09.09.2008
Karumpuli Lt. Col. Vinothan
Rasarathnam Pratap
Velanai West Yarlpanam
09.09.2008
(Translation by Tamilpriya)
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