"Paranthan army camp, situated strategically on the southern sector of Elephant Pass base complex, has fallen to the LTTE fighters today after intense fighting that lasted more than 24 hours. Paranthan junction and its surrounding areas are now under the control of the LTTE fighters..."

"...In the end, a solution to the Tamil Eelam - Sri Lanka conflict will have to be found by looking behind the stated positions of the parties to the conflict and trying to clarify and understand  the interests that each party seeks to protect. There is a need to genuinely understand these interests. There may be a need to refine, and build on, the approaches spelt out in Sri Lanka-Tamil Eelam: Getting to Yes..."

"In comparison to consecutive Sri Lankan governments, the LTTE have consistently had a better grasp of political and military realities.. the government's analysis is frequently based on hearsay, telling powerful people what they want to hear..."

Elephant Pass Falls to  LTTE

"Yakachchi and Elephant Pass bases forming the giant military complex of the Sri Lankan army on the gateway to Jaffna fell to the combat formations of the Liberation Tigers this afternoon following 48 hours of fierce and bloody fighting. Over one thousand Sri Lankan troops were killed and the rest fled in total disarray..."

"..The combat units of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) achieved spectacular military gains in the battle of Jaffna today when they advanced close to the city centre in the Jaffna municipal area and overran two major military bases in the Chavakachcheri sector..."

 India ready to take any step that is necessary  in Sri Lanka says Indian Prime Minister

"The dramatic advance of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) into the Jaffna peninsula, the heart of the Tamil area, is a shattering blow for Sri Lanka's President Chandrika Kumaratunga and raises concerns of regional instability for India. The immediate danger is massive bloodshed, with upwards of 25,000 Sri Lankan troops still in Jaffna city ....In the longer term, the prospects for Sri Lanka's fragile peace efforts have been badly undercut. Reviving them will require a much more radical approach to power sharing than the government has been willing to consider in the past. This will be very hard to sell to both the Sinhalese political mainstream and the LTTE, but it will only get harder with time.... A loose confederal structure, with some kind of explicit recognition of the Tamils as a collective group within it and with stronger guarantees of their inclusion in power at the national level, might be more successful. Two draft Canadian constitutions proposed that certain legislative changes would require a "double majority" of both English and French-speaking parliamentarians; an analogous provision might be useful. Obviously, this type of radical departure would be intensely controversial in the Sri Lankan political mainstream. But half measures will only prolong the country's agony..."

"The conflict has reduced Sri Lanka�s economic growth and the most obvious direct cost is in terms of defence expenditures, which increased from 1.3% of GDP in 1980 to 4-6% over recent years. Some of the other direct costs are government expenditures on relief, damaged infrastructure and military expenditure by the LTTE. ...Sri Lanka�s future economic and social development will depend not merely on maintaining sound macroeconomic management, but more importantly on the country�s ability to resolve the continuing conflict..."

 "The United States has an opportunity make Sri Lanka a model and help it to evolve, by negotiating, two autonomous democratic political structures within a system acceptable to both parties, where ethnic communities can coexist peacefully on the Island. The US should be firm in its message to the government and the opposition, that if negotiations are not forthcoming immediately, they should be prepared to conduct a referendum of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka.This can be done with the assistance of the United Nations similar to the referendum in East Timor. Thus, in the absence of a negotiated settlement, the Tamil people could determine whether they want a confederation or a separate state as endorsed by the Tamil people in the last democratic elections held in 1977 in the north and east of Sri Lanka..."

"..Unless consistent pressure is brought to bear on both the LTTE and the government, they are unlikely to make serious efforts to change. Although the parties cannot be forced to the negotiating table, points of leverage need to be considered. One point of leverage is aid, an option donor countries have been unwilling to use in the past but which bears another look, given that the Sri Lankan government is now channeling a much higher proportion of its resources into the war. At the same time, it would be helpful for the U.S. to find a way to open a channel of communication with the LTTE, as it has done with other guerrilla groups in the past. The willingness of many countries to concur with the Sri Lankan government�s demonization of the LTTE will not lead to an environment conducive to negotiations, and Washington should avoid such a one-sided approach..."

 "This is a war neither side can win militarily. It is a conflict that cannot be resolved without elected leaders being prepared to sit down with people who may well be responsible for barbarous assassinations, but who do have a legitimate political programme which needs to be engaged, not shunned. It took far too long for us to learn that lesson in Britain, and far too many lives were lost as a consequence. Equally, the LTTE, like the IRA, need to acknowledge that, whilst a Tamil Kingdom constitutionally split from the rest of the island will not receive recognition by Europe, the USA or indeed India, the principle of self determination and control over most if not all the key policies affecting daily life would be supported by the international community. There is no future for a Sri Lanka paralysed by dogma, intransigence and cruelty. Compromises, difficult decisions and tough choices will be needed, some painful..."