War Heroes’ Week May 12 to 18: Gotabhaya

Sri Lanka will celebrate the “Ranaviru Sathiya – War Heroes’ Week” from May 12 to 18, says Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa while engaging in an informal chat with the media at Elephant Pass in Vanni, where he unveiled a monument to commemorated those who sacrificed their lives in the fight against terrorism.

The Defence Secretary also said that the week will end with the Victory Day celebrations on May 20 in Colombo, probably at the Galle Face Green, reports our staff correspondent Dilshan Dodangoda who is in the Vanni while attending the event a short while ago.

Mid May marks an important day in the history of Sri Lanka as it was during such a period in 2009 that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), labeled as the world’s most ruthless terror organization was crushed by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces during their final push into the heart of the terror strongholds in the North.

Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was killed along with most top ranking members of the organization during the final battles which ended on the shores of the Nanthikadal lagoon on May 19, 2009.