HOAX: TIGER-HIT STORY

The Criminal Investigation Department toge-ther with top level government officials invented the story of a Tiger plot to attack the Colombo port and skillfully planted it in the media to justify the eviction of Tamil lodgers from Colombo, LAKBIMAnEWS learnt. They had passed the fabricated information to a private television channel generally considered anti-government. This TV station carried the story in its prime time news bulletin.

None of the top brass of the intelligence arms of the Army, Navy and Air Force were aware of an alleged guerrilla plot.
Senior army and naval officials who were privy to sensitive security information ruled out the CID story that the guerrillas were planning a massive attack on the Colombo port using LTTE sleepers who have infiltrated Colombo. “This is a cleverly executed psychological operation,” said a senior Naval official. “It is anybody’s guess what their objective is. But the common contention is they simply want to justify the evictions.”
Some others who were entrusted with the security arrangements for the city were clearly embarrassed by the planted information which they felt had let them down.
The CID confidently asserted that the guerrillas are planning a major attack on the Colombo Port in the middle of this year. The CID claim further went to state Sea Tiger boats will be launched from Wellawatta, Mount Lavinia and Dehiwala to confront two Dovra fast attack boats (FACs) providing security to the port, thus enabling two Tiger divers to execute an underwater attack on the boats. While the sea borne attack is in progress, guerrilla sleepers in the city would conduct raids on the security forces positioned in the port, it was said.
The CID also claimed guerilla aircraft would bomb the port. They went on to report that the Tiger plan was to ram a port entrance with a truck laden with explosives. It was claimed the C.I.D. had extracted this information from a Tiger guerrilla who claimed he attended a rehearsal of the attack.
The Defence Secretary confirmed the story that guerrillas had infiltrated the city. He also said last week: “We can’t arrest 300 people and detain them....So you can tell them, if you don’t have any legal business in Colombo, we don’t want to detain you. You go back to your homes.”

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