The Sri Lankan government Wednesday decided to formally ban the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) even as the army captured more Tamil Tiger-held areas Thursday, wresting the Pallai town in Jaffna peninsula, media reports said.
The decision to reimpose the ban with effect from midnight--taken at an emergency Cabinet meeting chaired by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa--effectively ended all prospects of peace talks with the Tamil Tigers. India, the United States and the European Union have already proscribed the LTTE headed by Velupillai Prabhakaran.
After the cabinet meeting, senior Cabinet minister Maithripala Sirisena told reporters that government took the decision to ban LTTE, against whom the security forces have launched a major offensive, as civilians were being held by the rebels.
The army said troops seized the town of Pallai, a key Tiger position south of Muhamalai and the northernmost defensive line of the rebels in Jaffna, after heavy fighting, and that it hopes to capture the entire north soon.
As the ground forces kept up their advance to capture the key Elephant Pass and towards the Tigers' military headquarters located at the coastal town of Mulaitivu, Air Force jets destroyed two sea Tiger boats near Kilinochchi, officials said.
The capture of the causeway would enable government troops from the south to link up with government forces in Jaffna who have been cut off from the rest of the island by LTTE positions. The fall of Mullaitivu and the nearby Elephant Pass will see the whole of Sri Lanka back in government hands for the first time since 1983.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.