Sri Lanka War Causes Thousands of Civilian Casualties, UN Says

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Source: Bloomberg

March 6 (Bloomberg) -- Sri Lanka’s conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam is causing thousands of civilian casualties, the United Nations said, as Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon called for an immediate cease-fire.

“The world body has no verifiable numbers due to lack of access for relief workers but estimates that thousands have been killed or wounded,” the UN said on its Web site, citing the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The government and the LTTE should suspend hostilities to allow civilians caught in the fighting in the north to leave and to let aid groups into the area, Ban said yesterday.

Sri Lanka’s army says it is on the brink of defeating the Tamil Tigers, who have waged a 26-year conflict for a separate homeland in the north and east of the South Asian island. As many as 150,000 people may be trapped in the north, the International Committee of the Red Cross said earlier this week.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601091&sid=aLkUt8Ah3Dig&refer=india