A LTTE leaflet demanding cooperation of the people says that initial efforts to liberate Jaffna are in progress. Rumours that the Tigers have acquired aircrafts are also causing apprehension. The Army carried out a search operation on 15 October in Eechamoddai, near Jaffna town, after LTTE posters appeared in the area. Hundreds of people were interrogated.
Heads of departments and other government officers have received letters, allegedly from the LTTE, calling for their resignation. Following a letter of threat to District Judge M Thirunavukarasu, five district courts in Jaffna were closed. The judges informed the Judicial Services Commission in October that they will not be able to continue work.
Airlines Monera and LionAir closed their offices in Jaffna after receiving a number of warnings. A LionAir plane which took off from Jaffna’s Palaly airport with 48 civilian passengers disappeared over Iranaitivu Islands in late September and the LTTE is suspected of shooting it down. A large number of people, including foreign nationals, are stranded in Jaffna following the suspension of air services. By disrupting air services and attacking ships, the Tigers have effectively isolated the Jaffna peninsula from the rest of the island.
In October, 27 local councillors resigned their posts in fear. All the local councils have come to a standstill following the killing of two Jaffna mayors in the last four months. Karaveddy regional councillor Kanagasabai Rajadurai was shot dead on 6 October. The Tamil parties have urged Colombo’s foreign envoys to exert pressure on the LTTE to allow the councils to function.
Jaffna’s former Army Commander Lionel Balagalle says that there are 200 Tiger infiltrators in the peninsula and the LTTE has no manpower or the weapons to launch an attack on Jaffna. On 27 October, Tiger shells killed an officer and wounded three other soldiers in the Elephant Pass camp. Four Tigers were arrested on Punkudutivu Island, west of Jaffna peninsula, in late October.
Reports say military security operations have intensified in western Valikamam area. The Army launched a search operation in Chankanai and Nitkamam on 10 October. Two days later, the area between Sithankerni and Pandatharippu was searched. People were ordered to assemble in public places and interrogated. The Vaddukottai area came under intense search on 20 October.