U.S., Britain express "profound" concern over humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka

Source: Xinhua | 05-13-2009 07:38

WASHINGTON, May 12 (Xinhua) -- The United States and Britain on Tuesday voiced their profound concern about the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka, calling on various sides involved in a bloody conflict there to prevent further civilian causalities.

During a meeting in Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband expressed "alarm at the large number of reported civilian causalities over the past several days" in northern Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lankan government recently strengthened strikes against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in the northeast of the country, vowing to return democracy to the LTTE-dominated region by dismantling the militant group.

While Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa claimed that "victory is near for (the government) troops," the fighting has drawn international criticism for leaving thousands of civilians killed.

In a joint statement issued after their meeting, Clinton and Miliband called on "all sides to end hostilities immediately and allow for the safe evacuation of the tens of thousands of civilians trapped within the safe zone."

The LTTE "must lay down their arms and allow civilians free passage out of the conflict zone," said the two top diplomats, adding that the government of Sri Lanka "must abide by its commitment of April 27 to end major combat operations and the use of heavy weapons."

The Sri Lankan government blamed the LTTE for holding civilians as human shields, while the militant group accused the government of indiscriminately firing at Tamil civilians.

Clinton and Miliband called on the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE to allow a UN humanitarian team to visit the conflict zone to facilitate the safe evacuation of civilians.

They also urged both sides to "allow food and medical assistance to reach those trapped by fighting, cooperate with the ICRC to facilitate the evacuation of urgent medical cases, ensure the safety of aid and medical workers, and permit humanitarian access to all sites where displaced persons are being registered or being provided shelter."

They also called for "a political solution that reconciles all Sri Lankans, and establishes a meaningful role for Tamil and other minorities in national political life."

The LTTE, which has waged a violent campaign for decades for an independent country in the northeast of Sri Lanka, has been declared a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and some 30 other countries.

The violent conflict between the Sri Lankan government forces and the LTTE militants has claimed some 70,000 lives since 1983.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei