LTTE shoots dead 11th intelligence operative in Dehiwela - by Kalinga Weerakkody

The number of army intelligence unit members gunned down by the LTTE during the past year reached 11 with the latest murder on Saturday in Dehiwala, Directorate of Military Intelligence sources said.
Military intelligence sources asserted that more than 20 intelligence operatives also had been killed by the LTTE in various parts of the country so far after the signing of the ceasefire agreement between the government and the LTTE.
Police sources said that two armed LTTE cadres had opened fire at the Tamil soldier attached to the Directorate of Military Intelligence, Lingaswami Devarasa alias Ashok (32) on Saturday night at Pepiliyana, Dehiwala and had fled the area in a three-wheeler. They had used 9 mm pistols to fire at point blank range at the victim’s chest six times.
The victim had succumbed to his injuries on admission to the Kalubowila Hospital.
Sources said that the victim a resident of Thirukkovil in Ampara and father of an infant, had been living in Dehiwala for the past five months under the special protection of the security forces.
Many government informants had been forced to abandon their native places owing to constant LTTE threats and most of them had sought shelter in Colombo and the suburbs under special security protection.
LTTE intelligence leader Pottu Amman had ordered his members to speed up the process of eliminating most wanted officers in the security forces who are attached to the Directorate of Military Intelligence in the north and east, including Jaffna, Vavuniya, Mannar, Batticoloa and Colombo.
One of the groups which had been entrusted with this task had been identified as the pistol gang of LTTE’s Sivakumar in Batticaloa, sources said.
The LTTE had deployed another group to gather information about Tamils who are working in the collusion with the police and the Directorate of Military Intelligence.
Intelligence sources said that this move had stifled work of the government intelligence machinery and many informants were now reluctant to provide information.
Sources said that LTTE members who had penetrated Colombo were stationed at communication centres, salons, boutiques and tuition classes.
Reports in the media recently said that more than 60 LTTE intelligence members had penetrated Colombo were denied by the Defence Ministry.