Sri Lanka: Christian relief agencies call for immediate "ceasefire"

Christian relief organisations aiding displaced civilians in war-torn Sri Lanka have called for an immediate "ceasefire" between the government and the Tamil rebels amidst reports of 2,000 Tamil civilians killed in last 15 hours.

Caritas Internationalis, Vatican City-based humanitarian agency, said "civilians are paying too high a cost for the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka and is calling for both sides to accept a ceasefire."

"Caritas is calling for all sides to respect international humanitarian law with regard to the protection civilians and to allow aid agencies access to provide humanitarian assistance."

According to latest report, nearly 2,000 Tamil civilians were killed in the attacks carried out by the Sri Lankan army during the last 15 hours. Most of it occurred in places like Mullaivaikkal, Otraipanaiyadi, Valaiyargund and Irattaivaikkal, says P Nedumaran, president, Tamil Nationalist Movement.

Another report said 64 people were reportedly dead after a makeshift hospital was attacked in Mullaivaikal.

Caritas Sri Lanka's National Director Fr Damian Fernando says that Caritas will continue to help the needy people and also negotiate with the government to find a lasting solution for peace in the country.

Fr Fernando said, "Sri Lanka is undergoing the worst scenario. Innocent civilians are paying a huge cost and are the worst hit. Already there are more than 130,000 who have crossed over to the [Vavuniya] government controlled side. These people are coming out in highly traumatised conditions. Most of them are tired and worn out after months of suffering. Many of them are injured and some of them are very severely wounded. The hospitals have totally exceeded their capacity to receive the wounded."

"The biggest challenge is to respond to the needs of these people who are now coming out in large numbers and in a few days will be amassed into the camps which are already overcrowded. The military forces in charge of the camps are totally preoccupied with security and fears of LTTE infiltration."

The World Vision has also called for an end to the civil war, which it said has displaced 200,000 Tamil civilians of whom 60,000 are child survivors.