SLA operation in Mannar south, three missing [TamilNet, April 08, 1999 08:06 GMT]

The Sri Lanka army is on a deep penetration operation in the jungles and coast in the southern extreme of Mannar, which is contiguous with the Puttalam district's border, sources said. Mrs. Philippu Calistus 40, who came to Mannar town Monday from the interior jungle village of Neelamadu in sthern Mannar said that three persons, including her husband Philippu Calistus Cruz, 45, who went to the coastal village of Pookkulam on the Puttalam-Mannar border on Saturday 24 March where hundreds of troops had moved in, have gone missing.
The SLA says that the Liberation Tigers have a large naval facility and linked jungle bases in this remote sector of the island's
Mrs. Philippu was in Mannar town Monday to seek the ICRC's assistance to help her locate her missing husband. She said that her family was displaced from Mullikulam, a hamlet in the heart of the thick forests in the southern sector of the Mannar district.
According to her, Philippu Cruz had gone hunting towards Pookkulam on Saturday with four persons from the village. His colleagues had seen the army deployment in and around the coastal hamlet and had promptly left the area. Philippu did not return.
The woman said that two others from her village who went to collect honey in the jungle in the same area on Saturday are also missing.