Sri Lankan Civil War
The Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an
on-and-off insurgency against
the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (the LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers), a separatist militant organization which fought to
create an independent Tamil state named Tamil Eelam in the north and
the east of the island. After a 30 year long military campaign, the Sri Lankan
military defeated the Tamil Tigers in May 2009.[1]For over 25 years, the insurgency caused significant hardships for the
population, environment and the economy of the country, with an estimated
80,000-100,000 people killed during its course.[15] The
tactics employed by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam resulted in their being
branded as a terrorist organization in 32 countries, including the
United States, India, Australia, Canada and the member nations of the European Union.[18]
After two decades of fighting and three failed attempts at peace talks, including the unsuccessful deployment of the Indian Army, the Indian Peace Keeping Force from 1987 to 1990, a lasting negotiated settlement to the conflict appeared possible when a cease-fire was declared in December 2001, and a ceasefire agreement signed with international mediation in 2002.[19] However, limited hostilities renewed in late 2005 and the conflict began to escalate until the government launched a number of major military offensives against the LTTE beginning in July 2006, driving the LTTE out of the entire Eastern province of the island. The LTTE then declared they would "resume their freedom struggle to achieve statehood".[20][21][22]
In 2007, the government shifted its offensive to the north of the country, and formally announced its withdrawal from the ceasefire agreement on January 2, 2008, alleging that the LTTE violated the agreement over 10,000 times.[23] Since then, aided by the destruction of a number of large arms smuggling vessels that belonged to the LTTE,[24] and an international crackdown on the funding for the Tamil Tigers, the government took control of the entire area previously controlled by the Tamil Tigers, including their de-facto capital Kilinochchi, main military base Mullaitivu and the entire A9 highway,[25] leading the LTTE to finally admit defeat on May 17, 2009.[26] Following the end of the war, the Sri Lankan government has described Sri Lanka as the first country in the modern world to eradicate terrorism on its own soil.[27][28]
After two decades of fighting and three failed attempts at peace talks, including the unsuccessful deployment of the Indian Army, the Indian Peace Keeping Force from 1987 to 1990, a lasting negotiated settlement to the conflict appeared possible when a cease-fire was declared in December 2001, and a ceasefire agreement signed with international mediation in 2002.[19] However, limited hostilities renewed in late 2005 and the conflict began to escalate until the government launched a number of major military offensives against the LTTE beginning in July 2006, driving the LTTE out of the entire Eastern province of the island. The LTTE then declared they would "resume their freedom struggle to achieve statehood".[20][21][22]
In 2007, the government shifted its offensive to the north of the country, and formally announced its withdrawal from the ceasefire agreement on January 2, 2008, alleging that the LTTE violated the agreement over 10,000 times.[23] Since then, aided by the destruction of a number of large arms smuggling vessels that belonged to the LTTE,[24] and an international crackdown on the funding for the Tamil Tigers, the government took control of the entire area previously controlled by the Tamil Tigers, including their de-facto capital Kilinochchi, main military base Mullaitivu and the entire A9 highway,[25] leading the LTTE to finally admit defeat on May 17, 2009.[26] Following the end of the war, the Sri Lankan government has described Sri Lanka as the first country in the modern world to eradicate terrorism on its own soil.[27][28]
