Sri Lanka: Sri Lankan Navy Takes on "Sea Tiger" Boats

The long and bloody war between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers continues with another sea battle, as set out here:

Sri Lanka Navy’s elite Special Boat Squadron (SBS) attacked an LTTE boat cluster in the seas off Alampil around 0130 hours on the 4th of April 2009.

The LTTE boat cluster numbering 10, which had been launched from the No-Fire-Zone in Puthumathalan, had comprised of 03 suicide craft and 07 attack craft. They had attempted to make a southward-bound move when the vigilant SBS personnel intercepted them and directed Naval gunfire completely destroying one enemy craft and disabling another. Two other enemy craft which had attempted to beach being unable to counter Naval fire were destroyed by the Ground Forces who quickly reacted cutting off the enemy escape. The rest had fled back carrying their casualties and re-landed in the No-Fire-Zone taking cover of the trapped innocent civilians inside.

Three Naval craft received minor damages and two sailors were injured in the incident. The exact casualty figure of the enemy is not known as at now. However, it is believed to be high due to the heavy combined fire directed at the enemy by the vigilant Navy and the Ground Forces.

More here:

A major sea-borne attack by the Tamil Tiger rebels has been foiled after the navy confronted a cluster of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) boats, killing 18 rebels onboard off the northeastern coast of Mullaitivu, defence sources said here Saturday.

According to the sources, the pre-dawn sea battle broke out when the navy's Special Boat Squadron (SBS) engaged a flotilla of 10 LTTE boats, which included three explosives-packed suicide boats, heading towards Alampil and Nayaru areas.
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"During the sea battle two LTTE boats were destroyed and one more was damaged. The navy conducting the search operation in the area have already recovered at least 11 bodies of the LTTE cadres killed in the pre-dawn clash," a defence official attached to the Media Centre for National Security said Saturday.

He added that two naval sailors were wounded and three naval boats sustained minor damages in the battle that broke out around 1.30 am and lasted for several hours.

The official said that in a separate incident a couple of hours later in the same area, army troops manning the forward defence along the northeastern coastal belt have sunk two other LTTE boats.

"The troops have recovered seven bodies after this incident. Intercepted LTTE communications have revealed that the enemy has suffered heavy casualties," the defence official said.