வன்னியில் பொறிவெடியில் சிக்கி பெருமளவு இராணுவத்தினர் சாவு! படைகளின் 6 முனை நகர்வு முறியடிப்பு [21 ஒக்டோபர் 2008, செவ்வாய்க்கிழமை 9:50 மு.ப இலங்கை]
வன்னிக்களமுனையில், நாச்சிக்குடா தொடக்கம் அக்கராயன் வரையிலான பகுதிகளில் இராணுவத்தினர் மேற்கொண்ட ஆறு முனை முன்நகர்வுகளுக்கு எதிராக தாங்கள் உக்கிரமான எதிர்த்தாக்குதலை நடத்தி படையினரின் நகர்வுகளை முடக்கியுள்ளனர் என்றும், இதில் படையினருக்கு பாரிய அழிவுகள் ஏற்பட்டுள்ளன என்றும் விடுதலைப்புலிகள் அறிவித்திருக்கின்றனர்.
கடந்த வெள்ளிக்கிழமை தொடக்கம் நேற்று திங்கட்கிழமை காலை வரை படையினரின் ஆறு முனை முன்நகர்வுகளுக்கு எதிராக விடுதலைப்புலிகள் உக்கிர தாக்குதலை நடத்தியவண்ணம் இருந்தனர் என 
நேற்றுக்காலை அங்கிருந்து கிடைத்த தகவல்கள் தெரிவித்தன.வான்படையின் எம்.ஐ. - 24 ரக ஹெலிகொப்டர்கள், கிபீர், மிக் - 27 ரக விமானங்கள், வெடிகணை, ஆட்லறி எறிகணை, இலகு மற்றும் கனரக ஆயுதங்களின் செறிவான சூட்டாதரவுடன் படையினர் முன்நகர்வுகளை மேற்கொண்டனர்.இதற்கு எதிராக தாங்கள், கண்ணிவெடிகள், பொறிவெடி வயல்களை உருவாக்கி - கொலை வலயங்களுக்குள் படையினரை இழுத்து - அவர்களை பெரும் தொகையில் கொன்று வெற்றிகண்டுள்ளனர் எனவும் புலிகள் அறிவித்தனர்.
நேற்றுக்காலை அங்கிருந்து கிடைத்த தகவல்கள் தெரிவித்தன.வான்படையின் எம்.ஐ. - 24 ரக ஹெலிகொப்டர்கள், கிபீர், மிக் - 27 ரக விமானங்கள், வெடிகணை, ஆட்லறி எறிகணை, இலகு மற்றும் கனரக ஆயுதங்களின் செறிவான சூட்டாதரவுடன் படையினர் முன்நகர்வுகளை மேற்கொண்டனர்.இதற்கு எதிராக தாங்கள், கண்ணிவெடிகள், பொறிவெடி வயல்களை உருவாக்கி - கொலை வலயங்களுக்குள் படையினரை இழுத்து - அவர்களை பெரும் தொகையில் கொன்று வெற்றிகண்டுள்ளனர் எனவும் புலிகள் அறிவித்தனர். 
தொடர்ந்து மோதல்கள் நடைபெற்றுக்கொண்டிருக்கின்றன எனவும் நேற்றுக்காலை வரை இடம்பெற்ற மோதல்களில் தமதுதரப்பில் 12 போராளிகள் வீரச்சாவடைந்துள்ளனர் என்றும் விடுதலைப்புலிகள் தெரிவித்தனர்.கிளிநொச்சியிலிருந்து தென்மேற்குத் திசையில் அக்கராயன் 15 கிலோமீற்றர் தொலைவிலும் நாச்சிக்குடா 35 கிலோமீற்றர் தொலைவிலும் உள்ளமை குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.இதேவேளை, வன்னியில் கடந்த சனிக்கிழமை முதல் இடம்பெற்ற மோதல்களில் 33 படையினர் கொல்லப்பட்டுள்ளனர். 48 பேர்
காயமடைந்துள்ளனர். மேலும் மூவர் காணாமற் போயுள்ளனர் என்று பாதுகாப்பு அமைச்சு நேற்று அறிவித்தது.சனிக்கிழமை முதல் நடைபெற்ற கடுமையான மோதல்களின் பின்னர் தாம் புதிதாக கைப்பற்றிய பகுதிகளில் படையினர்
நிலைகளைப் பலப்படுத்தி வருகின்றனர் என்று இராணுவப் பேச்சாளர் கூறுகிறார்."கிளிநொச்சிக்கு தெற்கேயுள்ள விடுதலைப்புலிகளின் இறுதிப் பாதுகாப்பு அரண்களை 57ஆவது டிவிஷன் படைப் பிரிவினர்அக்கராயன் குளத்திற்கு கிழக்கிலும் வடக்கிலுமிருந்து முன்னேறி கைப்பற்றியுள்ளனர். இதேவேளை வடமேற்கு கடற்கரைப்
பகுதியிலுள்ள கடற்புலிகளின் இறுதிப் பாரிய தளமான நாச்சிக்குடாவை இராணுவத்தினர் சுற்றி வளைத்துள்ளனர். இந்த
மோதல்களின்போது 33 படையினர் கொல்லப்பட்டனர். 48 பேர் காயமடைந்துள்ளதுடன் மூவர் காணாமற் போயுள்ளனர் " எனவும்
பாதுகாப்பு அமைச்சு தெரிவித்துள்ளது.இதன்போது உயிரிழந்த 11 விடுதலைப்புலிகளின் சடலங்களும், ஆயுதங்களும் படையினரால் கைப்பற்றப்பட்டுள்ளன எனவும் தெரிவிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.
நன்றி: யாழ் உதயன், புகைப்பட இடுகை நமது.
OPINION
The Spectre Of Stalingrad
Is one seeing a mini version of Stalingrad in the battle for Kilinochchi, the current headquarters of the LTTE? Could "Gen.Monsoon" and "Gen.Recession" put an end to the pipedreams of the Sri Lankan Army of a definitive victory over the LTTE?
B. Raman
The Battle of Stalingrad is considered the bloodiest battle with the largest battlefield casualties in the history of conventional warfare. Under a carefully
worked out plan, the Soviet Army inveigled an advancing and over-confident Nazi Army into Stalingrad and then inflicted severe casualties on the Nazi Army. Many of those Nazi soldiers whom the Soviet Army could not kill were killed by "Gen.Winter". The entire Sixth Army of the Nazis was trapped by the Soviet troops with the help of "Gen.Winter" and destroyed.
As the battle began on July 17,1942, the Nazi Disinformation machine worked overtime to tell an unsuspecting German people that the fall of Stalingrad and the collapse of the Soviet Army were imminent. The German people waited with bated breath for the news of the fall. "Within two days", they were
told. Two days became two weeks. Two weeks became two months. Two months became seven months. The battle ended disastrously for the Nazis on
February 2, 1943. This marked the beginning of the end of the Nazi dreams in the Second World War.
Is one seeing a mini version of Stalingrad in the battle for Kilinochchi, the current headquarters of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)? It is
difficult to say on the basis of the scanty information available from the battle front. From even this scanty information, two things are clear: Firstly, the
Sri Lankan Army, which senses victory against the LTTE, has been doing well, but not as well as it claims to be. Secondly, the LTTE has been doing
badly, but not as badly as projected to be by the disinformation machine of the Sri Lankan Army . The LTTE has shown that there is still a lot of fight left
in it-- and a lot of intelligence and innovative thinking.
But intelligence and innovative thinking alone cannot win wars without resources and the wherewithal. The LTTE is deficient on both counts. But it has
shown itself to be as resilient as the Taliban in Afghanistan and as fiercely-motivated. In 2003, the Americans thought and claimed that they had
finished the Taliban once and for all. Their facile assumptions proved to be wrong. The Taliban came back--as if it has risen from its much-proclaimed grave-- and has been moving forward relentlessly. Neither air strikes by the most powerful Air Force in the world nor heavy artillery strikes by the most powerful Army in the world have been able to stop its advance. Reluctantly, senior NATO military commanders in Afghanistasn have started admitting
that the war against the Taliban is unwinnable and that one has to search for a political solution with neither victory nor defeat for either side. It has
not only become unwinnable unless the Taliban commits some serious tactical mistakes, but is also likely to become increasingly unaffordable thanks
to the financial and economic melt-down in the US and the rest of the world.
The LTTE is calculating that if it can keep fighting against the Sri Lankan Army for some more months, a prolonged war against the LTTE could become
as unwinnable and as unaffordable for the rulers of Sri Lanka as a prolonged war against the Taliban for the NATO powers. The rulers of Sri Lanka are
living in a fool's paradise if they think that China and Pakistan would come to their rescue if the government of India stops assisting them under
pressure from public opinion in Tamil Nadu. The Pakistani economy is on the verge of a collapse. Even the Chinese were reluctant to help out their
time-tested friend as they call Pakistan, as President Asif Ali Zardari found to his dismay when he visited China recently. The Pakistan Army is reeling
under one set-back after another inflicted on it by the Taliban.To think that the Pakistan Army would rush to Sri Lanka to spite India would be the
height of stupidity.
The Chinese, who are increasingly worried over the impact of the recession in the US on their manufacturing industries, which are heavily dependent on
the US market, are hugging tight their foreign exchange holdings. They were reluctant to make any definitive commitment of help to Zardari. They are
even showing a decline of interest in further developing the Gwadar port project. In a world beset with the most serious economic crisis it has known
since the Great Depression of the 1930s, everybody, including China, is interested in saving every dollar and cent he can. Nobody wants a foreign
adventure, which might drain off their depleting resources. If the Sri Lankan Army thinks that China would try to rush in if India stops helping, it is in for
a disappointment.
The LTTE is calculating that if it can keep fighting against the Sri Lankan Army for some more weeks, "Gen.Monsoon" and "Gen.Recession" could put an
end to the pipedreams of the Sri Lankan Army of a definitive victory over the LTTE.
Will its calculations prove right or will they be belied? Whatever happens, one thing seems likely-- there is going to be no definitive victory or no definitive defeat for either side in the on-going war.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Raman is Additional Secretary (retired), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi. and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. He is also associated with the Chennai Centre for China Studies
worked out plan, the Soviet Army inveigled an advancing and over-confident Nazi Army into Stalingrad and then inflicted severe casualties on the Nazi Army. Many of those Nazi soldiers whom the Soviet Army could not kill were killed by "Gen.Winter". The entire Sixth Army of the Nazis was trapped by the Soviet troops with the help of "Gen.Winter" and destroyed.
As the battle began on July 17,1942, the Nazi Disinformation machine worked overtime to tell an unsuspecting German people that the fall of Stalingrad and the collapse of the Soviet Army were imminent. The German people waited with bated breath for the news of the fall. "Within two days", they weretold. Two days became two weeks. Two weeks became two months. Two months became seven months. The battle ended disastrously for the Nazis on
February 2, 1943. This marked the beginning of the end of the Nazi dreams in the Second World War.
Is one seeing a mini version of Stalingrad in the battle for Kilinochchi, the current headquarters of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)? It is
difficult to say on the basis of the scanty information available from the battle front. From even this scanty information, two things are clear: Firstly, the
Sri Lankan Army, which senses victory against the LTTE, has been doing well, but not as well as it claims to be. Secondly, the LTTE has been doing
badly, but not as badly as projected to be by the disinformation machine of the Sri Lankan Army . The LTTE has shown that there is still a lot of fight left
in it-- and a lot of intelligence and innovative thinking.
But intelligence and innovative thinking alone cannot win wars without resources and the wherewithal. The LTTE is deficient on both counts. But it hasshown itself to be as resilient as the Taliban in Afghanistan and as fiercely-motivated. In 2003, the Americans thought and claimed that they had
finished the Taliban once and for all. Their facile assumptions proved to be wrong. The Taliban came back--as if it has risen from its much-proclaimed grave-- and has been moving forward relentlessly. Neither air strikes by the most powerful Air Force in the world nor heavy artillery strikes by the most powerful Army in the world have been able to stop its advance. Reluctantly, senior NATO military commanders in Afghanistasn have started admitting
that the war against the Taliban is unwinnable and that one has to search for a political solution with neither victory nor defeat for either side. It has
not only become unwinnable unless the Taliban commits some serious tactical mistakes, but is also likely to become increasingly unaffordable thanks
to the financial and economic melt-down in the US and the rest of the world.
The LTTE is calculating that if it can keep fighting against the Sri Lankan Army for some more months, a prolonged war against the LTTE could becomeas unwinnable and as unaffordable for the rulers of Sri Lanka as a prolonged war against the Taliban for the NATO powers. The rulers of Sri Lanka are
living in a fool's paradise if they think that China and Pakistan would come to their rescue if the government of India stops assisting them under
pressure from public opinion in Tamil Nadu. The Pakistani economy is on the verge of a collapse. Even the Chinese were reluctant to help out their
time-tested friend as they call Pakistan, as President Asif Ali Zardari found to his dismay when he visited China recently. The Pakistan Army is reeling
under one set-back after another inflicted on it by the Taliban.To think that the Pakistan Army would rush to Sri Lanka to spite India would be the
height of stupidity.
The Chinese, who are increasingly worried over the impact of the recession in the US on their manufacturing industries, which are heavily dependent onthe US market, are hugging tight their foreign exchange holdings. They were reluctant to make any definitive commitment of help to Zardari. They are
even showing a decline of interest in further developing the Gwadar port project. In a world beset with the most serious economic crisis it has known
since the Great Depression of the 1930s, everybody, including China, is interested in saving every dollar and cent he can. Nobody wants a foreign
adventure, which might drain off their depleting resources. If the Sri Lankan Army thinks that China would try to rush in if India stops helping, it is in for
a disappointment.
The LTTE is calculating that if it can keep fighting against the Sri Lankan Army for some more weeks, "Gen.Monsoon" and "Gen.Recession" could put anend to the pipedreams of the Sri Lankan Army of a definitive victory over the LTTE.
Will its calculations prove right or will they be belied? Whatever happens, one thing seems likely-- there is going to be no definitive victory or no definitive defeat for either side in the on-going war.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Raman is Additional Secretary (retired), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi. and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai. He is also associated with the Chennai Centre for China Studies
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