Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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July 29, 2008

Fighting Continues in Sri Lanka Despite Tamil Tiger Cease-Fire 
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Rebels, fighting for independent homeland, declare 10-day cease-fire
while dignitaries are in town for South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation summit 
Sri Lanka's government says it has no faith in a unilateral cease-fire
declared by rebel Tamil Tigers for the duration of a South Asian
leader's summit. Fighting is continuing in the north while a security
blanket is being thrown over the capital to ensure nothing goes amiss
while visiting dignitaries of the South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation are present. VOA's Steve Herman reports from Colombo.
Perhaps only in Baghdad is there another national capital where security
on the streets is this tight.Soldiers check driver, passenger IDs in
ColomboSoldiers on Colombo's Marine Drive, parallel to the Indian Ocean,
randomly pull over vehicles for inspections and to scrutinize
identification cards of drivers and passengers. In a drive of a few
kilometers motorists can be expected to be halted several times at
roadblocks. Sri Lanka has deployed an additional 12,000 police officers
and 7,000 military personnel to augment normally tight security. The
goal is to prevent any !
 attacks by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The Tamil Tigers, on
the defensive in the north of the country, have declared a unilateral
10-day cease-fire while dignitaries are in the capital for the leader's
summit of SAARC, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.
Despite that declaration, fighting between troops and the Tamil Tigers
is continuing on three fronts. Sri Lanka Army spokesman, Brigadier Udaya
NanayakkaraArmy spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara tells VOA News the
government cannot trust the rebels to observe their own cease-fire and
will try to keep them on the defensive while Sri Lanka hosts the high
profile regional summit."They are terrorists. Whenever they declare a
unilateral cease-fire they have some kind of hidden agenda," he said.
"You cannot believe them so we have taken necessary precautions and at
the same time we'll be applying pressure on them so that they'll have to
concentrate on their own ground rather than creating any sabota!
 ge activities in the areas in Colombo."Activity at military checkpoint
 in ColomboThere are conflicting accounts of this week's fighting in the
northern Wanni region. The military says more than 30 rebels and three
government soldiers died. Media reports quote the Tigers, who have been
fighting for 25 years for an independent Tamil homeland, as claiming
success in resisting the military offensive and killing five soldiers.
Some 1,000 delegates of SAARC are converging on Colombo. Later in the
week the heads of governments are expected to arrive from Afghanistan,
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan. China, the
European Union, Iran, Japan, Mauritius and the United States are sending
observer delegations. 


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