Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

Tuan Nizam Muthaliff, RWP, MI (July 12, 1966 – May 31, 2005) was a

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 ...

officer and

intelligence officer An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a rank, used in the same way a ...

who, while serving as the

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

, 1 Military Intelligence Corps, was assassinated by the

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 ...

during the ceasefire and peace process.

Early life and education

Born to a

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

family in

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...

, Muthaliff was educated at D.S. Senanayake College, Colombo where he excelled in both studies and sports.

Military career

Early career

Having completed his schooling, Muthaliff joined 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 ...

as a

cadet officer St John Ambulance Ireland (SJAI), previously known as the St John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland, is a charitable voluntary organisation in Ireland. For constitutional reasons it is not a full member association of the Venerable Order of Saint Jo ...

in June 1986. He first underwent basic training at the

Sri Lanka Military Academy The Sri Lanka Military Academy () (SLMA or SLMA Diyatalawa), commonly known simply as Diyatalawa, is the Sri Lanka Army's training centre where officer cadets are trained for getting commission. It is located in the garrison town of Diyatalawa ...

Diyatalawa Diyatalawa (දියතලාව, meaning “the watered plain”) is a former garrison town in the central highlands of Sri Lanka, in the Badulla District of Uva Province. It is situated at an altitude of and has become a popular destination ...

and subsequently received officer training at the

Pakistan Military Academy Pakistan Military Academy ( ur, ), also referred to by its acronym PMA. PMA is an officers training school located near Kakul village in the city and district of Abbottabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa established in 1947. It is the sole service academy ...

. On completing his training, he was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the 4th Battalion,

Gemunu Watch The Gemunu Watch (GW) ("King Dutugemunu's Own") is a infantry regiment of the Sri Lanka Army, formed with troops from the Sri Lanka Light Infantry, Ceylon Light Infantry and the Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment, Ceylon Sinha Regiment in 1962. It has bee ...

and took part in military operations such as the

Vadamarachchi Operation Operation Liberation also known as the Vadamarachchi Operation was the military offensive carried out by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces in May and June 1987 to recapture the territory of Vadamarachchi in the Jaffna peninsula from the LTTE (Tam ...

. He was promoted to the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

on June 2, 1989.

Military intelligence

From 1990, he was attached to the Military Intelligence Unit of the Joint Operations Command which later became the Directorate of Military Intelligence and he was transferred to the

Military Intelligence Corps The Military Intelligence Corps is the intelligence branch of the United States Army. The primary mission of military intelligence in the United States Army is to provide timely, relevant, accurate, and synchronized intelligence and electronic ...

with its formation in 1990. He was promoted to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on July 2, 1992, and afterwards to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

on July 2, 1995. During this time he had served as general staff officer III (Intelligence) at Army Headquarters;

officer commanding The officer commanding (OC), also known as the officer in command or officer in charge (OiC), is the commander of a sub-unit or minor unit (smaller than battalion size), principally used in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. In other countries, ...

, Military intelligence training section; group commander, Intelligence Security Group in

Jaffna Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th most ...

for about three and a half years, group commander at the Directorate of Military Intelligence in Colombo for about three years since 1997 and general staff officer I (intelligence) in

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 ...

from 2000 to 2001. He under went several foreign training courses, such as the he Intelligence Staff Course and Counter Intelligence Course at the

Directorate General of Forces Intelligence The Directorate General of Forces Intelligence ( bn, প্রতিরক্ষা গোয়েন্দা মহাপরিদপ্তর), commonly known as DGFI, is the military intelligence agency of the Bangladesh Armed Forces, tas ...

; the Junior Command Course at the

Army War College, Mhow The Army War College, Dr.Ambedkar Nagar (A.W.C.) is a defence service training and research institution of the Indian Army located in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh. It develops and evaluates concepts and doctrines for tactics and logistics for the army. ...

; South Asian Peace Keeping Course in Hawaii and the International Intelligence course in the USA. He was appointed

, 1 Military Intelligence Corps in November 2004. At the time of death he was also head of the Colombo Cell. Muthaliff had provided vital intelligence for major military operations such as

Operation Balavegaya Operation Balavegaya (Operation Power force) was a combined military operation launched by the Sri Lankan military in Jaffna, the largest amphibious assault in its history. Operation Balavegaya was launched in response to the siege of Elephant ...

Operation Jayasikurui 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 month ...

and provided Brigadier

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 ...

with critical information forewarning him of the LTTE attack on Weli Oya. The LTTE had attempted to assassinate Muthaliff in two previous occasions, with gunmen in Vavuniya and with a suicide bomber in Jaffna.

Assassination

Major Muthaliff was shot dead in his car by

LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...

gunmen at Polhengoda junction in

Narahenpita Narahenpita is a municipal ward of Colombo. Located at the South-Eastern corner and served by the Kelani Valley Railway Line The Kelani Valley railway line in Sri Lanka, covering the breadth of Colombo District. The line is owned, maintained, ...

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

at 7:45 AM on 31 May 2005. He was traveling from his home in Manning Town, Narahenpita to the

Kotelawala Defence Academy General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) ( Sinhala: ජෙනරාල් ශ්‍රිමත් ජෝන් කොතලාවල ආරක්ෂක විශ්ව විද්‍යාලය ''General Sir John Kotelawala'' ''Ar ...

, where he was following a course in computer science. Traveling in an unmarked civilian car with a civilian chauffeur provided by the army, when gunmen had fired at Muthaliff who was shot multiple times while he was seated in the rear seat of the car; when it stopped at the traffic lights at the Polhengoda junction in front of the military police headquarters. The Sri Lanka Army accused the LTTE of the assassination. In recognition of his service to the army, he was posthumously promoted to the rank of

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

with effect from 1 May 2005 and to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

with effect from 31 May 2005. He was buried at the burial grounds of the Dehiwala Muhaideen Grand Jumma Mosque for Janaza on 1 June 2005 with full military honors.

Investigation

Police

Criminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is distinct from its Special Branch (though officers of b ...

investigations into the attacks on Generals

Sarath Fonseka Field Marshal Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka ( si, ගාර්දිහේවා සරත් චන්ද්‍රලාල් ෆොන්සේකා, ta, சரத் பொன்சேகா; born 18 December 1950), commonly know ...

and

Parami Kulatunga Lieutenant General Parami Sugandika Bandara Kulatunga, RSP, VSV, USP ( Sinhala:පාරමී කුලතුංග) (9 October 1951 in Kandy – 26 June 2006) was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer. He was serving as the Deputy Chief of Staff ...

, discovered LTTE links with

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

groups in Colombo and military personnel who had collaborated with the LTTE for money. Major Manamendra Dassanayake was convicted of aiding and abetting the LTTE in the assassinations of Lieutenant General Parami Kulathunga, Colonel

Tuan Rizli Meedin Colonel Tuan Rizly Meedin (27 July 1966 – 29 October 2005) was a Sri Lanka Army officer and intelligence officer who, while serving as the Senior Staff Officer, RHQ, Military Intelligence Corps, was assassinated by the Liberation Tigers o ...

and Colone Tuan Nizam Muthaliff.

Awards and decorations

His gallantry in the battlefield and also through his work in intelligence earned him several awards, including the

Rana Wickrama Padakkama The Rana Wickrama Padakkama (RWP, Combat Gallantry Medal) ( Sinhala: රණ වික්‍රම පදක්කම) is awarded to Sri Lankan military service personnel serving in both the regular- and volunteer forces as a reward for: Bars ...

. He also received the

Sri Lanka Armed Services Long Service Medal __NOTOC__ The Sri Lanka Armed Services Long Service Medal ( Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා සන්නද්ධ සේවා දීර්ඝ සේවා පදක්කම ''Śrī Laṃkā ārakśaka sēvā dhīrgha sēvā padakkama'') i ...

North and East Operations Medal The North and East Operations Medal ( Sinhala: උතුරු නැගෙනහිර සංග්‍රාමික පදක්කම ''uthuru nægenahira sangrāmika padakkama'') was a decoration presented to servicepersons of the Military o ...

Purna Bhumi Padakkama The Purna Bhumi Padakkama ( Sinhala: පූර්ණ භූමි පදක්කම ''pūrna bhūmi padakkama'') was a service medal awarded by the Military of Sri Lanka The Sri Lanka Armed Forces is the overall unified military of the Democ ...

, Operation Wadamarachchi Medal,

Riviresa Campaign Services Medal The Riviresa Campaign Services Medal ( Sinhala: රිවිරැස මෙහෙයුම් පදක්කම ''riviræsa meheyum padakkama'') was a campaign medal presented to all ranks of the regular and volunteer forces of the Military of ...

, and

50th Independence Anniversary Commemoration Medal The 50th Independence Anniversary Commemoration Medal ( Sinhala: ස්වර්ණ ජයන්ති පදක්කම ''swarna jayanthi padakkama'') was a military decoration awarded by the Military of Sri Lanka The Sri Lanka Armed Forces ...

for his service during the course of his military career.

Family

Muthaliff was married Kumudini Amarasinghe Muthaliff, who retired from the Sri Lanka Army in 2009 as a Lieutenant Colonel having served as the commanding officer, Sri Lanka Army Women's Corps. They had a daughter, Sarah and son, Maalik.

References

SPUR

The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, No. 1,505 – FRIDAY, JULY 06, 2007, PART I : SECTION (I) – GENERAL

External links

Official Website of Sri Lanka ArmyMinistry of Defence, Sri LankaMIC-Military Intelligence Corps
{{DEFAULTSORT:Muthaliff, Tuan Nizam 1966 births 2005 deaths Sri Lankan colonels Sri Lankan intelligence operatives Alumni of D. S. Senanayake College Pakistan Military Academy alumni Assassinated military personnel Assassinated Sri Lankan people Deaths by firearm in Sri Lanka Gemunu Watch officers Military Intelligence Corps officers Sri Lankan Malays Sri Lankan Muslims People killed during the Sri Lankan Civil War Army War College, Mhow alumni