Calm before a storm... Tigers stockpiling weapons
 

From the early days of the separatist insurgency, Velupillai Prabhakaran decided to be different from the rest of the over half a dozen militant groups fighting for a separate state. Of course, like other groups, the LTTE relied on Indian assistance. But, regular bickering by his Indian handlers disturbed the Tiger chieftain.

As differences surfaced, Prabhakaran, embarked on a different journey.

He sent his erstwhile friend and former merchant mariner, Tharmalingham Shunmugham, alias Kumaran Pathmanathan better known as KP to explore the underground arms market in South East Asia and South West Asia.

Since then for almost two decades, the Tiger arms smuggling wing, known as KP department access weapons from markets in Eastern Europe; Southeast, Northeast and Southwest Asia; and, most recently, southern Africa.

The arms smuggling wing is one of the most secretive of the group's international operations.

Most wanted list

KP, on the Interpol Most wanted list, is notably a nondescript in person and a seasoned undercover operator, who is believed to be using some 20 passports reportedly to his name.

He is linked by both Western and Sri Lankan intelligence sources to arms deals that have been ranging from Croatia to South Africa. His main operating bases have been Rangoon, Bangkok, and, in the late nineteen nineties Johannesburg, with most of his transactions financed through established bank accounts held in London.

According to the experts on insurgency, Pathmanathan establishes his brokers and intermediaries around the world through a sophisticated human export ring that draws on the LTTE's general human-smuggling capabilities.

Tamil expatriates in the west such as Australia, Canada, Europe and the United States allegedly obtain visas for overseas countries (where such applications are less likely to arouse suspicion). Potential agents with somewhat similar facial features of the original applicants are then chosen and travel, with a LTTE representative, to the selected states. The impersonators are left to apply for refugee status (either in the chosen state or an adjacent country), while the LTTE rep returns with the original pass- ports, handing them back to their rightful owners, according to a study by RAND cooperation.

At the heart of the KP Department's operations is a highly active shipping network, known informally within the group as the "Sea Pigeons."

Indeed, the termination of Indian support after the Indo-Lanka peace accord saw a greater energy of LTTE's international operations being pumped to build its arms smuggling wing.

That saw a rapid expansion of its fleet, which according to recent intelligence reports, numbers at least 11 deep-sea freighters, the majority of which reportedly sail under Honduran, Liberian, or Panamanian flags, countries known for lax registry requirements.

One already known ploy is that the "Sea Pigeons" repeatedly change the names and flags during the transport of illegal cargo, which confound international tracking and monitoring efforts.

The merchant Navy of the Tigers most of the time, engage in the legitimate transport of commercial goods such as cement, oil,tea,rice, paddy and fertilizer, but, when required will be deployed in illegal arms smuggling for the Tigers.

The LTTE's source of weaponry range from Afghanistan to the South East Asia, former Soviet Bloc and Eastern European countries.

Booming under-ground arms market have emerged in the former war zones of South East Asia and South West Asia.

Especially, in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Afghanistan, where the group has obtained every- thing from rapid-fire pistols and assault rifles to rocket-propelled grenades and surface-to-air missiles. Ammunition requirements- including mortar, artillery, and 12.7-mm machine-gun rounds-are mostly met by purchases from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic.

In the beginning of the Third Eelam war following the break up of peace talks with the Kumaratunga Administration, the Tigers shot down two Avro Aircraft with Afghan Mujahedin provided SAM missiles. Many of the weapons acquired from Afghanistan had initially been supplied by the United States in support of the Mujahedin to fight the Soviet-backed regime.

There are also intelligence reports that the LTTE is pushing to extend the reaches of its global arms network to South Africa. Country's borders with once war zones of Mozambique and Angola, a heaven for underground arms market is an incentive to the LTTE to open its offices in South Africa. Sizeable Tamil minority in South Africa and absence of any laws dealing with terrorism in the post-Apartheid Africa stand for the LTTE's comfort.

There are several groups in South Africa that are openly supportive of the LTTE. In the recent times,Thailand has emerged as the main logistical interface between these various international weapons sources and the Tamil separatist war in Sri Lanka. There are reports of increasing presence of LTTE arms dealers in Indonesia and Cambodia. The third in command of the KP department, Pratheepan Thavaraja was arrested in January in Indonesia.

The LTTE operated out of Thailand for most of the 1990s, though it is only during the past eight years that the country emerged as the key hub in the group's international arms network. Prior to this, the Tigers had relied on bases off Cambodia and Burma.

Usual practice in the LTTE arms smuggling is that arms cargo is delivered by the Tiger merchant Navy, Sea Pigeons to the warehouses in the Southern coast of Thailand. From there, the armament is off loaded to smaller vessels for the final 1,900 km trip to the landing ports in Mullaitivu.

As the Tiger offensive in August to lay seige to the city of Jaffna were heading to a close, security forces noticed a scale down in the Tiger artillery and mortar attack.

As the troops set for the capture of Sampur, again, it was evident that the Tigers were firing mortars sparsely to a striking contrast to artillery and mortar barrages which rained on the Security forces Defence Lines during the first two weeks of the Jaffna offensive.

The understanding in the military circles was that the Tigers were running short of artillery and mortar shells.

To further complicate the situation, the Navy destroyed a suspected LTTE arms smuggling vessel off Mullativu, alleged to be transporting 200 Tons of arms cargo.

Beefed up travel cordon

With the beefed up naval cordon off the Sri Lankan waters, it became increasing by difficult for the LTTE to rearm as the government stepped up its military campaign.

During the recent past, the Navy foiled several attempts by the LTTE at arms smuggling, sinking several trawlers, some converted as logistical craft off the North-Western Coast. The military planners also viewed the recent lull in the Battle front, where the Tigers didn't opt for a major offensive since the miscalculated Jaffna siege, as the calm before a storm.

Understandably, the Tigers are licking the wounds of the costly offensive on the security forces defence lines in the Jaffna Peninsula as well as the recent setback in Vakarai. The latter, despite, most of its achievements remain in obscurity inflicting heavy casualties on the Tiger military machinery. Though it was the material loss of the Tigers, which amounted to the largest cache of Tiger armament recovered by the troops, the huge loss of the cadre would have a greater impact on the Tiger military machinery.

According to the senior security force sources, an estimated 716.

Tiger cadres were killed during the three months of jungle warfare in the coastal stretch of Vakarai, Kathiravei and Verugal.

These figures could not be independently verified, but, should they be reflective of the battle ground realities, that along amount to ten percent of the fighting cadre of the LTTE. Under realistic estimates, the total fighting cadre of the LTTE could not be more than 7,500.

What was noticeable during the previous Tiger offensives, most notably, during "the Unceasing Waves," which over ran the Elephant Pass Military Garrison, the LTTE supplemented its lower man power with a high volume of arsenal. The Tigers deployed 152mm,130mm, 122 mm artillery guns and 120 mm mortars along with several rudimentary Multi Barrel Rocket Launchers believed to be similar to Katyusha Rocket Launchers used by Hizbullah guerrillas.

The heavy volume of indirect force took the security forces by surprise and brought the Tigers to the city gates of Jaffna.

Recent lull is a forewarning of the rearming and regrouping of the LTTE. All indications are that the LTTE is stockpiling weapons for a major onslaught.

It was the success of the Navy, which foiled several attempts of arms smuggling that stand to be an obstacle.

But, in the vast Sri Lankan waters, it is naive to assume that every sea Tiger boat ended at the Navy cordon. While some were captured, it is most possible some others could have succeeded on their journey.

The usual practice of the Tigers is that cargo of arms are loaded to the trawlers in the deep sea. Trawlers transport the cargo to the Tiger landing ports in the Eastern Coast. And the recent phenomena is that with the stepped up Naval patrol in the Eastern Coast, several Tiger logistical craft were blown up by the Navy off the North-Western Coast. Two Naval Fast Attack Craft were on routine patrol off Pulmudai on Tuesday night. Just before midnight, their radars flashed a flotilla of sea Tiger boats. The flotilla of 14 boats were launched from Nayaru and heading southwards hugging the coast.

The crew on board the Dovra FACs engaged with the sea Tiger boats. Ground troops fired air burst of artillery targeting the sea Tiger boats.

During the resultant fire fight, two sea Tiger boats were destroyed. The others fled towards Nayaru towing the 03 craft which sustained damages.

The Navy said 15 LTTE cadres were believed dead. 02 sailors also sustained minor injuries.

The LTTE had named three sea Tigers, who were the second rung leaders as dead in the Tuesday's battle. They are Aruna Karunan, a Lt.Colonel in the Tiger rank and Anal Puli and female sea tiger Deshamalar, both are Majors in the LTTE rank.

The destination of the sea tiger flotilla is not known. But, the fact a senior sea Tiger leader was on board a sea tiger boat is indicative that the flotilla was proceeding for a mission important.

Could it be a mere coincidence when the Navy destroyed a suspected arms smuggling vessel 180 nautical miles off Point Dondra.

A Navy Offshore Patrol Craft intercepted the suspicious vessel in the early morning of Wednesday.

The ship did not carry a flag, nor did it display its registered No of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). The crew on board the OPV contacted the suspicious vessel over channel 16 of the Maritime Frequencies for information. But, the crew found the information provided by the suspicious vessel was incompatible with the records of Loyds Ship Registry.

Final destination

The suspicious ship was ordered to berth at the Galle Harbour for inspection. But, not heeding to instructions, the ship headed towards international waters.

The Navy fired warning shots. The Navy spokesman Commander D.K.P.Dasanayake said the OPV was fired upon from the direction of the ship with medium calibre guns.

The Navy opened fire which set the ship ablaze. A series of explosions were heard from the sinking vessel, which suggested that the ship could be transporting artillery shells.

Later the Navy frogman recovered several shells of artillery.

The Navy spokesman said the sunken ship had the capacity to transport a cargo of thousand tonnes. Meaning the ship could have transported 10,000 of artillery shells.

Had the Tigers succeeded smuggling the arms cargo, it is safe to assume that the next major Tiger offensive would have been a couple of weeks ahead. But, with the Navy beefing up the naval cordon and sea tigers desperately trying to sneak in, rough seas are ahead.

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