புலித்தேவன் கைது உண்மையில்லை என்று பவன் மறுப்பு

புலித்தேவன் காது செய்யப்பட்டமை தொடர்பாக வெளியான செய்திகளில் எதுவித உண்மையும் இல்லை என்று புலிகள் இயக்கத்தைச்சேர்ந்த பவன் என்பவர் ஏஎவ்பி செய்தி நிறுவனத்தினருக்கு மின் அஞ்சல் மூலம் தெரிவித்துள்ளதாக ஏஎவ்பி செய்தி நிறுவனம் செய்தி வெளியிட்டுள்ளது. இலங்கை அரசு வெளியிட்ட செய்திபற்றி அந்த மின் அஞ்சலில் எதுவித விளக்கமும் குறிப்பிடப்படவில்லை என்று ஏஎவ்பி செய்தி நிறுவனம் மேலும் தெரிவித்துள்ளது.

Sri Lanka Ministry: Tamil Rebels 'Arrest' Own Senior Leader



COLOMBO (AFP)--Sri Lanka's defense ministry said Tuesday Tamil Tiger rebels had "arrested" one of their own senior figures in a worsening internal dispute, a claim immediately denied by the guerrillas.

A ministry statement said Seevaratnam Prabaharan, alias Pulidevan, head of the peace secretariat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, had been detained on the direct orders of LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran.

"The arrest has been made as a result of a worsening internal dispute among key LTTE figures," the ministry said.

The information came from "defense intelligence authorities," the ministry statement said.

"An armed gang led by LTTE's intelligence wing leader Pottu Amman had made the arrest few days back," it added.

However, a rebel spokesman said Pulidevan was still working.

"There is no truth about the news item," spokesman V. Bavan said in an email response to AFP.

"He (Pulidevan) is still the head of LTTE peace secretariat and in the office."

Bavan made no comment on the ministry allegation of internal disputes.

Pulidevan was part of an LTTE delegation that took part in several rounds of peace talks with the Sri Lankan government during a six-year truce that Colombo scrapped in January.

The Sri Lankan government claims to have the LTTE on the run after capturing large areas of the east of the island last year following a rift in rebel ranks.

In a bid to defeat the rebels, the army has launched numerous assaults on Tiger-held territory in the north this year.

Tens of thousands have died on both sides since the LTTE launched an armed struggle in 1972 to carve out an independent homeland for Tamils from the majority Sinhalese.