The Battle of Weli Oya, was a battle between the
militant
The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin " ...
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
(LTTE or Tamil Tigers) and the
Sri Lanka Army
ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம்
, image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army
, start_date ...
during the
Sri Lankan Civil War for control of the military bases in
Weli Oya
Weli Oya, ( ta, மணலாறு, translit=Maṇalāṟu) is a Sinhalese colony area in Mullaithivu District, Sri Lanka formerly known as Manal Aru. Weli Oya has been affected by the Sri Lankan civil war and government colonization programs.
...
in northern
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
on 28 July 1995.
Background
The LTTE launched a surprise attack, on the government controlled area of Weli Oya, aimed at overrunning four army camps (Kokkilai, Kokkuthuduvai, Jayasinghapura and Janakapura) in the area including the Weli Oya Brigade headquarters. Troops posted to these camps were mostly
reservists
A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is ...
from
volunteer regiments,
national guardsmen with artillery and engineering units. The army units came under the command of
Brigadier
Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...
Janaka Perera
Major General Janaka Perera, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, VSP, rcds, psc, CR (1 February 1946 – 6 October 2008) was a Sri Lankan General and politician. He served as the Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army and is considered one of the most d ...
, Brigade Commander of the 6th "Weli Oya" Brigade, who had prepared the defense of the camps, having gain warning of a possible attack from the
military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...
.
Attack
On the morning of 28 July 1995, LTTE units which included veterans from their
attack on Pooneryn armed with weapons captured from the army at Pooneryn; attacked from both land and from seaward amphibious landings. The army units which had put a stiff defense had sustained 2 killed and many wounded. The attackers failed to penetrate the defense lines or knock out artillery gun placements as it had planned with the use of female suicide bombers.
SLAF provided air support, knocking out LTTE transports, while the
Sri Lanka Navy
ta, இலங்கை கடற்படை
, image = Sri Lanka Naval Seal.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of Sri Lanka Navy
, dates =
, c ...
deployed
Dvora-class fast patrol boat
The Dvora-class fast patrol boat is a fast class of patrol boats built by Israel Aerospace Industries for the Israeli Sea Corps based on the Israeli .
Operational history
Sri Lanka
The Dvora class has become the work horse of the Sri Lanka ...
s off the coast of Weli Oya disrupting LTTE movements at sea.
Aftermath
Soon after the battle, Brigadier Perera was transferred to command the elite Reserve Strike Force (RSF) which consisted of special forces, commando and air mobile units in Jaffna. A few months later he played a major role commanding the elite
53 Division in the
Operation Riviresa
Operation Riviresa (Operation Sunrays), was a combined military operation launched by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces in Jaffna. Starting on 17 October 1995, the primary objective of the operation was the capture of the city of Jaffna and rest of ...
which the Sri Lanka Army re-captured the whole of the
Jaffna peninsula Following his retirement, Major General Janaka Perera entered politics contesting in the
2008 North Central Provincial Council election for the post of
Chief Minister
A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...
. Although his party failed to gained majority, he won the highest number of preferences. He was killed a few months later by a LTTE suicide bomber on 6 October 2008 in
Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...
.
See also
*
List of Sri Lankan Civil War battles
After defeating the insurgency led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) in 1971, the Sri Lanka Armed Forces were confronted with a new conflict, this time with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other Tamil militant groups. The w ...
*
Battle of Pooneryn
The Battle of Pooneryn (LTTE code-named ''Operation Thavalai Paachchal (Frog Leap)''), was a battle between the militant Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) and the Sri Lankan military during the Sri Lankan Civil War for ...
*
Battle of Mullaitivu (1996)
The Battle of Mullaitivu ( ta, முல்லைத்தீவுச் சமர், translit=Mullaittīvup Pōr; si, මුලතිව් සටන ''Mulativ Saṭana''), also known as the First Battle of Mullaitivu and codenamed Operation ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Weli Oya
Weli Oya
Weli Oya, ( ta, மணலாறு, translit=Maṇalāṟu) is a Sinhalese colony area in Mullaithivu District, Sri Lanka formerly known as Manal Aru. Weli Oya has been affected by the Sri Lankan civil war and government colonization programs.
...
Weli Oya
Weli Oya, ( ta, மணலாறு, translit=Maṇalāṟu) is a Sinhalese colony area in Mullaithivu District, Sri Lanka formerly known as Manal Aru. Weli Oya has been affected by the Sri Lankan civil war and government colonization programs.
...
1995 in Sri Lanka
July 1995 events in Asia