Lankan air force drops leaflets in LTTE territory

{image-Sri Lanka Air Force_30082008.jpg news.oneindia.in}Colombo, Aug 30: Sri Lanka's Air Force has begun dropping leaflets urging civilians to leave the country's northern areas, which are presently under the control of the Tamil Tiger rebels.

According to the BBC, the move comes ahead of what is expected to be a fight to the finish in Sri Lanka's protracted civil war. Aid agencies say 134,000 displaced people are in Kilinochchi District alone, where the rebels have their administrative headquarters. More than half of them have abandoned their homes in the last three months. The military has advanced rapidly into Tiger territory during that time.

Residents of Kilinochchi confirmed that they had seen a helicopter flying low overhead on Friday night, dropping thousands of leaflets. The leaflets, written in Tamil, said the rebels were facing huge defeats and urged civilians to save their lives by leaving for government-held territory.

A spokesman for Sri Lanka's Air force, Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara, said more leaflets had been scattered in the area.

ANI