Battle of Jaffna (1995)

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Jaffna (1995)
partof=the Sri Lankan civil war


caption=
date=October 17, 1995 - December 5, 1995
place=Jaffna, Sri Lanka
casus=
territory=
result=Sri Lankan Army victory
combatant1=
combatant2= Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
commander1=Major General (later General) Rohan Daluwatte, Brigadier (later Major General) Janaka Perera
commander2=
strength1=10,000
strength2=Unknown
casualties1=500 killed (According to Sri Lankan Government claims) [http://www.comebackalive.com/df/dplaces/srilanka/index.htm Sri Lanka - DangerFinder ] ]
casualties2=2,000 (According to Sri Lankan Government claims) killed
notes=

The Battle of Jaffna was a battle fought from October to December 1995 for the city of Jaffna. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/5/newsid_4618000/4618661.stm|title=1995: Jaffna falls to Sri Lankan army|publisher=BBC News|date=December 05, 1995]

The Battle

The city of Jaffna had been for years a major stronghold of the LTTE. The Tigers wieved the city as the capital of their new independent state. The city was briefly recaptured by the Indian army in 1987 but was later captured again by the Tigers. The new president of Sri Lanka, Kumaratunga, initially wanted to resolve all difference with the Tamils by peacfull means but the army pressured her to order an offensive against the LTTE. On October 17, 1995, 10,000 SLA soldiers attacked the city and in a 50-day siege that lasted until December 5, 1995. The Sri Lankan government claimed that up to 500 soldiers and 2,000 rebels were killed. In the end the army managed to take the city and the peninssula from the Tigers, thus cripling the LTTE, however most of the LTTE forces managed to retreat into the jungle. [cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/WORLD/9512/sri_lanka/index.html|title=Sri Lankan army hails capture of Jaffna|publisher=CNN|date=December 5, 1995]

Aftermath

Initially the Army stated that the battle for Jaffna ended the war and the LTTE will never again be able to fight major battles against the government. It was believed that the insurgency was at it's end. However this was not the case, which was apparent when the LTTE attacked an army detachment in Batticaloa district December 23, killing 33 troops. Military sources reported that more than 60 rebels were killed. Over the next seven months the LTTE reorganised and regrouped and in July 1996, the rebels launched Operation Unceasing Waves, which was the codename for the attack on the military base at Mullaitivu. More than 1,200 soldiers were killed and the base was destroyed. [cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9604/21/sri.lanka/|title=Sri Lankan troops continue push into rebel territory|publisher=CNN News|date=April 21, 1996]

References