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Sri Lanka 's airport shut after Russian cargo plane makes emergency landing
Associated Press,
Wed February 4, 2004 15:56 EST .
- - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Sri Lanka - temporarily closed its only international airport Thursday after a Russian cargo plane made an emergency wheels-up landing and slid to a stop blocking the runway, an airport official said. There were no reports of casualties despite the plane being forced to land on its belly, an airport official said on condition of anonymity. He said the island's only air link had been shut until at least 0230 GMT, and arrangements were being made to tow the aircraft. At least two Colombo-bound flight have been diverted and made emergency landings in Chennai, India.
Published: Wed Feb 4 17:41:53 EST 2004
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Sri Lanka celebrates 56th anniversary of Independence
Leo de Lile in Colombo,
5.30pm, SLT Feb.04, 2004.
Soldiers of Sri Lanka's army march during a pageant to celebrate Sri Lanka's
56th independence at Independence Square in Colombo on Wednesday, February
04, 2004. Tanks, multi-barrel rocket launchers and other heavy weaponry
rolled through the capital in a show of force for the first time in six
years to mark the nation's independence day as a two-year old cease-fire
with the Tamil Tiger rebels falters.
More...
Published: Wed Feb 4 06:48:31 EST 2004
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Sri Lankan northern capital remains calm, XINHUA
Associated Press,
Wed February 4, 2004 14:50 EST .
- - COLOMBO, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka - 's northern city of Jaffna remained calm on Wednesday despite calls by the Tamil Tiger rebels to raise black flags in protest the country's 56th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule. Northern sources said that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels raised black flags at the Jaffna university premises and observed a day of mourning claiming that the majority Sinhala dominated regimes since independence had discriminated the minority Tamil community. The city of Jaffna is under the control of the government troops since 1996 and the military sources said that the Sri Lankan national flag was displayed prominently in the city. However, business places remained closed and the transport was at a trickle. The LTTE rebels also closed the entry point to the A9 highway linking the south with the north at Omanthai and asked the travelers to join a protest against independence day celebrations. The international truce monitors, the Sri Lanka - Monitoring Mission and the International Red Cross officials were called to intervene, the sources added. The main celebration took place in the capital Colombo where President Chandrika Kumaratunga presided over the ceremony. She called for a united effort of all political parties to try and work towards a permanent solution to end over two decade old ethnic conflict. The president urged action to make the stalled peace process with the Tamil Tiger rebels an "inclusive" process of all groups of diverse opinion. The government and the LTTE rebels have been observing ceasefire since February 2002 followed by the commencement of direct talks between the two sides seven months later. Six rounds of talks had been held until last April when the rebels walked out. A political standoff triggered by President Kumaratunga's taking over of three key ministries including the defense early November last year has remained unresolved which has had an adverse impact on the Norwegian- brokered peace process. Copyright 2004 XINHUA all rights reserved as distributed by WorldSources, Inc.
Published: Wed Feb 4 15:48:04 EST 2004
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Lankans' spin plan
