Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels on Thursday commemorated the 20th anniversary of their first-ever suicide bombing by honouring 322 fighters who have staged such deadly attacks.
The suicide attacks by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) started when a guerrilla known as Captain Miller drove a truck bomb into soldiers killing 40 on the Jaffna peninsula on July 5, 1987.
The pro-rebel Puthinam.com website said 322 members of the elite "Black Tiger" suicide squads had perished in attacks since then and that the group had deployed 61 suicide bombers in the past year alone.
Puthinam.com said 241 of the suicide bombers were killed in sea-going attacks while the others died in land-based blasts.
The guerrillas held Hindu religious services in rebel-held territory Thursday to invoke blessings on the Black Tigers, regarded by Tiger chief Velupillai Prabhakaran, 52, as the group's protective armour.
The deadliest Black Tiger attack occurred last October 16 when Tigers drove a truck bomb into a transit point where 350 sailors were waiting to board buses in north-central Sri Lanka. At least 116 of them were killed.
Sri Lanka troops and police stepped up their already tight security arrangements in the run-up to the Black Tiger anniversary which comes amid an upsurge of fighting in the tropical island that began in late 2005.
"Measures are underway to heighten our alert during the Black Tiger week," police spokesman Senior Deputy Inspector General Jayantha Wickramaratne said. "We are taking all measures to eliminate the risk of terrorist attacks."
"We are also seeking public cooperation for information regarding suspicious activity in their neighbourhoods."
The Tamil Tigers are fighting for an independent homeland for the minority ethnic Tamils on the majority Sinhalese island. The 35-year-old conflict has claimed more than 60,000 lives.
(http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070705/wl_sthasia_afp/srilankaunrestsuicide_
070705073411&printer=1;_ylt=An1aGBvhaUQZAardfuaeqOHuOrgF)
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