Operation Jayasikuru
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Operation Jayasikurui (''Certain Victory'' in Sinhala), was a Sri Lankan military operation launched on 13 May 1997, it lasted until 1999, when it was called off. The operation was initially launched for 6 months but cancelled after 18 months as Sri Lankan government faced huge loss. It was the largest military operation undertaken by the armed forces at the time. The primary objective of this operation was to clear a land route to the government-held Jaffna peninsula (which had no land supply routes) through territory held by the
LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
(or Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, popularly known as the Tamil Tigers), by linking the government-held towns of
Vavuniya Vavuniya (, romanized: ''Vavuṉiyā'', , romanized: ''Vavuniyāva''). Vavuniya City is the capital of Vavuniya District in the Northern Province, Sri Lanka, Northern Province of Sri Lanka and the largest city in the Northern Province. The municip ...
and
Kilinochchi Kilinochchi ( ta, கிளிநொச்சி, translit=Kiḷinocci; si, කිලිනොච්චි, translit=Girānika) is the main town of Kilinochchi District, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. Kilinochchi is situated at the A9 road som ...
. At the time it was the largest military operation undertaken by the Sri Lankan military. Initially, the
Sri Lankan military The Sri Lanka Armed Forces is the overall unified military of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka encompassing the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy, and the Sri Lanka Air Force; they are governed by the Ministry of Defence (Sri Lank ...
experienced success by forcing the LTTE out of Killinochchi, capturing large areas, however, the
LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
managed to launch an effective counter-attack which reversed some gains made by the government forces. After failing to achieve the original objective, the government called off the operation.


Background

Following Operation Riviresa in 1995, the Sri Lankan military gained control over the Jaffna peninsula. The LTTE withdrew to the jungles of the
Wanni The Vanni, also spelled Wanni, is the name given to the mainland area of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It covers the entirety of Mannar, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya Districts, and most of Kilinochchi District, and has an area of approximately ...
from where in 1996 they launched an attack on the isolated Sri Lanka Army (SLA) garrison in Mullaitivu. After the Battle of Mullaitivu the LTTE gained control over the Mullaitivu district, since the government did not re-establish a base due to the lack of a land supply route to it. Instead, at the request of the deputy minister of defence, Gen. Anurudha Ratwatte, the military forces began to plan a large-scale operation to open a land route to Jaffna.


The battle

The operation launched on 13 May 1997, with the 53rd Division spearheading the offensive along with the 21st, 54th, 55th and 56th Divisions. It was preceded by a massive artillery and aerial bombardment, with the SLA breaking out of their fortifications at Vavuniya and Manal Aru and pushing into LTTE-controlled Vanni. The stated objective of the operation was to capture the A9 Highway, running from Vavuniya to the Jaffna peninsula, thereby allowing the establishment of a main supply route (MSR) to the SLA's isolated Jaffna garrison. It was also meant to engage and draw the LTTE out of its secure jungle bases. The Tigers could then be crippled, if not destroyed, by the SLA's superior firepower. The SLA wanted to diminish the strength of the LTTE by the end of the year so that it had to fight only a low-intensity guerrilla war. The operation was very ambitious from the start, requiring large numbers of troops for both offensive operations and the defense of the captured territory. As a result, units of the Sri Lanka Navy and the
Sri Lanka Air Force The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) ( si, ශ්‍රි ලංකා ගුවන් හමුදාව, Śrī Laṃkā guwan hamudāva; ta, இலங்கை விமானப்படை, Ilaṅkai vimāṉappaṭai) is the air arm and the yo ...
were deployed for ground operations in support of the SLA. The LTTE also staged a number of counterattacks against SLA positions throughout the campaign. One was during June 1997, when the Tigers launched attacks on the SLA-held towns of Thandikulam and
Omanthai Omanthai is a little town in North Sri Lankan district of Vavuniya. The last Sri Lankan army check point which divided the Government and LTTE controlled areas used to be in Omanthai for many years. Education * Omanthai Central College Tran ...
.
TamilNet TamilNet is an online newspaper that provides news and feature articles on current affairs in Sri Lanka, specifically related to the erstwhile Sri Lankan Civil War. The website was formed by members of the Sri Lankan Tamil community residing in ...
claimed that the attacks left 700 SLA soldiers dead and some 1,500 wounded in contrast to only 165 dead rebels. In addition, the SLA garrison at Mannakulam was also attacked on 4 December 1997; 146 SLA soldiers were killed in the fighting along with an unknown number of LTTE. The operation nevertheless did not manage to accomplish over half of its objectives. By mid-May 1998 it had completely stalled. The LTTE didn't show any resistance initially, but at
Puliyankulam Puliyankulam is a town in Vavuniya District, Sri Lanka. A road going through this town connects Mankulam (Sri Lanka), Mankulam to Vavuniya. Another road going through Puliyankulam connects Nedunkeni, Oddusuddan and Mullaitivu to Vavuniya. Transp ...
, LTTE troops led by Brig. Theepan showed huge resistance and blocked the Army at
Puliyankulam Puliyankulam is a town in Vavuniya District, Sri Lanka. A road going through this town connects Mankulam (Sri Lanka), Mankulam to Vavuniya. Another road going through Puliyankulam connects Nedunkeni, Oddusuddan and Mullaitivu to Vavuniya. Transp ...
for more than 4 months. LTTE cadres penetrated SLA lines and sabotaged a major staging area, destroying vast quantities of supplies and killing dozens of troops.
Puliyankulam Puliyankulam is a town in Vavuniya District, Sri Lanka. A road going through this town connects Mankulam (Sri Lanka), Mankulam to Vavuniya. Another road going through Puliyankulam connects Nedunkeni, Oddusuddan and Mullaitivu to Vavuniya. Transp ...
was meant to be the linking-up point for the twin prongs of the SLA assault. However, the LTTE had built effective defenses at the village and after three months of heavy fighting the SLA had to withdraw after suffering hundreds of casualties and dozens of tanks destroyed. The LTTE cadres at Puliyankulam had irrevocably delayed the SLA's advance and the operation could no longer be completed on time. With stiff resistance in place, the Army bypassed
Puliyankulam Puliyankulam is a town in Vavuniya District, Sri Lanka. A road going through this town connects Mankulam (Sri Lanka), Mankulam to Vavuniya. Another road going through Puliyankulam connects Nedunkeni, Oddusuddan and Mullaitivu to Vavuniya. Transp ...
and maneuvered through jungles and reached another village called Kanagarayankulam, hoping to outmaneuver the LTTE cadres, but the LTTE managed to hold off the Army's advance. Unable to break LTTE defense lines, the SLA decided to open the battle on multiple fronts. As the fight continued, defense lines become very long, stretching from Nay-Aaru all the way to
Mannar Mannar may refer to the following places: India * Mannar, Alappuzha, a town in Chengannur Taluk, Kerala Sri Lanka * Mannar District, one of 25 districts in Sri Lanka ** Mannar Island, an island within the district **Mannar Bridge, a bridge connect ...
. The fighting would continue for several months but the critical A9 highway (between Mankulam and
Kilinochchi Kilinochchi ( ta, கிளிநொச்சி, translit=Kiḷinocci; si, කිලිනොච්චි, translit=Girānika) is the main town of Kilinochchi District, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. Kilinochchi is situated at the A9 road som ...
) remained in the LTTE's occupation. In 1998, the SLA moved some of its forces from Kilinochchi towards the south, leaving the entire district vulnerable. In September 1998, the LTTE launched its "Operation Unceasing Waves II", resulting in the capture of the entire Kilinochchi district. Brutal fighting continued on the A9 highway. LTTE admitted to losing some 1,300 fighters during the course of actions in Jayasikurui counter battles.


Aftermath

Operation Jayasikurui ended after 19 months in 1999 when it was called off by then-President
Chandrika Kumaratunga Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga ( si, චන්ද්‍රිකා බණ්ඩාරනායක කුමාරතුංග, ta, சந்திரிகா பண்டாரநாயக்க குமாரதுங்க; born 29 Ju ...
. The operation had failed to achieve its objective of gaining a land route to Jaffna, but had acquired the towns of Mannakulam, Omanthai and Nedunkerni. However, in the process several areas, including the town of
Kilinochchi Kilinochchi ( ta, கிளிநொச்சி, translit=Kiḷinocci; si, කිලිනොච්චි, translit=Girānika) is the main town of Kilinochchi District, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. Kilinochchi is situated at the A9 road som ...
, were lost to the LTTE, which also claimed to have captured a 122mm artillery piece (bringing its total to five), 81mm and 60mm mortars, machine guns, RPG launchers and assault rifles. The human cost of the operation was high, with both sides sustaining heavy casualties. The government admitted to losing around 1,350 soldiers since the start of the operation, although some independent western analysts thought that the figure could be as many as 1,500 to 3,000. The leader of the main Sri Lankan opposition party, Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe said in parliament on Saturday, 10 October 1998(4 months before the official end of the operation), that a total of 3,566 SLA troops had been killed and 11,200 wounded during Operation 'Jayasikurui'. 1,516 troops had been killed and 8,000 wounded in the first year of 'Jayasikirui', he added.


See also

* Operation Riviresa * Battle of Mullaitivu * Thandikulam-Omanthai offensive *
Oddusuddan offensive The Oddusuddan offensive was a military operation in which the Tamil Tigers captured Oddusuddan from the Sri Lankan Army. They were also believed to have captured large amounts of weapons and ammunition as well as armoured vehicles during the op ...


References

{{reflist


External links

;Sri Lanka Army
Operation Jayasikurui, Sri Lanka Army
;Pro-rebel

Jayasikurui Jayasikurui 1997 in Sri Lanka