Battle of Jaffna (1995)
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2019) |
| Battle of Jaffna (1995) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Sri Lankan civil war | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Military of Sri Lanka | Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 10,000 | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 500 killed (According to Sri Lankan Government claims)[1] | Unknown[1] | ||||||
The Battle of Jaffna was fought from October to December 1995 for the city of Jaffna.[2]
Battle
The city of Jaffna had been for years a major stronghold of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The Tigers viewed the city as the capital of their new independent state. The city was briefly recaptured by the Indian army in 1987 during Operation Poomalai but the city was later captured again by the Tigers.
The newly-elected president of Sri Lanka,
On October 17, 1995, 10,000 SLA commenced the campaign to Jaffna city (25 miles away) and in a 50-day battle that lasted until December 5, 1995, up to 300 Sri Lankan Army soldiers and over 550 LTTE cadres were killed. In the end the army managed to take the city and the peninsula from the Tigers, thus crippling the LTTE, however most of the LTTE forces managed to retreat into the jungle.[3]
Aftermath
Initially the Army stated that the battle for Jaffna ended the war and the LTTE would never again be able to fight major battles against the government. It was believed that the insurgency was at its 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 30 rebels were killed. Over the next seven months the LTTE reorganised and regrouped and in July 1996, the rebels launched
See also
- Battle of Jaffna (2006)
- List of Sri Lankan Civil War battles
References
- ^ a b Sri Lanka – DangerFinder Archived November 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "1995: Jaffna falls to Sri Lankan army". BBC News. December 5, 1995.
- ^ "Sri Lankan army hails capture of Jaffna". CNN. December 5, 1995. Archived from the original on March 20, 2005.
- ^ "Sri Lankan troops continue push into rebel territory". CNN News. April 21, 1996. Archived from the original on February 22, 2005.