Havelock Road bombing explained

Havelock Road Bombing
Location:Havelock Road, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Date:March 2, 1991
Target:Ranjan Wijeratne
Time-Begin:Rush hour
Timezone:UTC+5:00
Type:remote controlled car bomb
Fatalities:19[1]
Injuries:73
Perpetrators:Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Tamil Tigers)

The Havelock Road Bombing was the detonation of a remote controlled car bomb on March 2, 1991, during rush hour in Thimbirigasyaya (also known as Havelocktown) a suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka. According to Jane's Information Group it was carried out to assassinate Ranjan Wijeratne, the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Defense[2] (deputy defense minister) by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)[3] which was a terrorist organization fighting for a separate land for Tamils in the country. The bomb was detonated as the Minister's armored car passed it, killing 19 people including the minister, five security personal and 13 civilian by standers.[1] [2] Minister Wijeratne was known to have a hard line stance towards the LTTE.[4]

The blast occurred on Havelock Road (a stretch of the Highlevel road) close to Police Field Headquarters during morning rush hour when the minister was on his way to office from his home.[1] In 2008, Tamil Tigers accused[5] that Ranjan Wijeratne tried to kill their leader Velupillai Prabhakaran during the 1990 peace process.

See also

Notes and References

  1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/2/newsid_4201000/4201675.stm 1991: Sri Lankan hardliner among 19 killed in blast
  2. http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/usscole/jir001020_1_n.shtml Suicide terrorism: a global threat, www.janes.com
  3. http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/sentinel/sent000904_6_n.shtml Jane's Sentinel examines the success of the LTTE in resisting the Sri Lankan forces
  4. http://www.rediff.com/news/2000/jul/10lanka.htm The Rediff Special
  5. News: Col. Charles laid to rest in Ki'linochchi. Tamilnet. 2008-01-09. 2009-01-09.