See main article: List of attacks attributed to the LTTE. The following is a list of chronological attacks attributed to the LTTE in 1980s during the Sri Lankan Civil War. The deadliest single attack for the decade was the Anuradhapura massacre in 1985.
1984 marked the intensification of the war between the Tamil separatists and the Sri Lankan government, as well as the first reports of civilian massacres by the LTTE.
| Date | Attack | Location | Sinhalese | Tamils | Muslims | Death toll | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 11 | Dollar Farm massacre 33 civilians which included women and children were attacked in Dollar Farm village in the night by an armed group made up of LTTE cadres. | Mullaitivu District | 33 | 33 | [2] | |||
| November 30 | Kent Farm massacre Following the attack on the Dollar Farm village, a second night raid was launched by the LTTE cadres which targeted the Kent Farm village, 29 civilians including women and children were massacred. They also looted and set fire on to victims houses. | Mullaitivu District | 29 | 29 | ||||
| December 1 | Kokilai massacre LTTE cadres kill eleven Sinhalese civilians in the fishing village of Kokilai. | 11 | 11 | [3] | ||||
| December 31 | LTTE members kill 4 Tamil civilians and dump them outside of Batticaloa for refusing to fight for the group. Altogether 30 Tamil civilians were killed for similar reasons in 1984. | 30 | 30 | [4] |
1985 marked a major escalation of hostilities. For the first time the LTTE attacked a major Sinhalese majority town killing 146 unarmed civilians. The impact of this attack was felt across the island and received worldwide attention.
| Date | Attack | Location | Sinhalese | Tamils | Muslims | Death toll | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5 | Wilpattu Village Massacre: Wilpattu, a Sinhalese village in Anuradhapura District, was the target of a raid of an armed group of LTTE cadres, who killed 18 villagers that included women and children. | Wilpattu, Anuradhapura District | 18 | 18 | [5] | |||
| May 14 | Anuradhapura massacre LTTE gunmen shoot dead 146 Sinhalese civilians and injure 85 others as they were praying at Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, a sacred Buddhist shrine in Anuradhapura. | Anuradhapura, Anuradhapura District | 146 | 146 | [6] | |||
| May 14 | LTTE cadres shoot dead 18 Sinhalese civilians in the Wilpattu National Park while they are fleeing from the massacre of 146 civilians earlier in the day (see Anuradhapura massacre). | Wilpattu National Park, Anuradhapura District | 18 | 18 | ||||
| May 30 | LTTE cadres shoot and kill five Sinhalese civilians in the villages of Mahandapura and Dehiwatta. People of these villages had previously received numerous threats from the LTTE associates. This massacre was part of a series of massacres aimed at displacing Sinhalese from the North East of Sri Lanka. | Mahandapura and Dehiwatta, Polonnaruwa District | 5 | 5 | [7] | |||
| June 4 | Dehiwatta Village Massacre: Armed with sharp weapons over 100 LTTE cadres killed 15 villagers on their sleeping mats in the village of Dehiwatta. Victims included women and children, which were the majority killed. | Dehiwatta, Polonnaruwa District | 15 | 15 | ||||
| June 11 | 13 Sinhalese civilians are shot dead by LTTE gunmen in Dehiwatta. | Dehiwatta, Polonnaruwa District | 13 | 13 | ||||
| August 2 | LTTE cadres shot dead three Sinhalese Buddhist monks and three civilians, while they were worshipping at the Ruhunu Somavathiya Temple. | Thrikonamadu, Polonnaruwa District | 6 | 6 | ||||
| August 14 | Aranthalawa Village Massacre: Seven Sinhalese villagers were tortured and killed at Aranthalawa. They were targeted by an armed group of LTTE cadres. | Aranthalawa, Ampara District | 7 | 7 | ||||
| August 18 | Namalwatta Village Massacre I: A group of LTTE cadres armed with sharp weapons hacked 7 villagers. | Namalwatta, Trincomalee District | 7 | 7 | ||||
| November 7 | Namalwatta Village Massacre II: Ten villagers, including women and children were raided and executed at Namalwatta for the second time. | Namalwatta, Trincomalee District | 10 | 10 | ||||
| December 20 | Six Madhu pilgrims, abducted by the LTTE on 12/12/85 were executed. | Mannar, Mannar District | 6 |
| Date | Attack | Location | Sinhalese | Tamils | Muslims | Death toll | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 2 | Kantale Village massacre: Armed with small arms and swords LTTE cadres raided the village of Kantalai killing 19 civilians. | Kantalai, Trincomalee District | 19 | [8] | ||||
| February 19 | When refugees from Serunuwara, Dehiwatta were being escorted by army personnel along Ella/Kantalai road, LTTE exploded a mine killing 35 civilians and four army personnel. | Sittaru Kantalai, Trincomalee District | 39 | |||||
| May 3 | Air Lanka Flight 512 LTTE bomb explodes aboard Air Lanka flight carrying mainly French, British and Japanese tourists killing 21 (including 13 foreigners - of whom 3 British, 2 German, 3 French, 2 Japanese, 1 Maldivian and 1 Pakistani) and injuring 41 on Bandaranaike International Airport. | Katunayake, Western Province | 21 | [9] | ||||
| May 5 | Kinniya Village massacre: Four Moor civilians were tortured and killed by a group of LTTE cadres. | Kinniya, Trincomalee District | 4 | 4 | ||||
| May 6 | Central Telegraph Office Bombing: The Central Telegraph Office, Colombo was the target on a bomb detonated by the LTTE cadres which killed 14 civilians who were at the office. | Colombo | 14 | |||||
| May 25 | Mahadivulwewa Village massacre: An armed group of LTTE cadres killed 20 Sinhalese by shooting them dead and set alight 20 houses. | Mahadivulwewa, Anuradhapura District | 20 | 20 | ||||
| June 2 | Trincomalee 3rd Mile post massacre: Civilian homes at the 3rd mile post, Trincomalee were stormed by a group of armed LTTE cadres who killed 10 civilians, including women and children | Trincomalee | 10 | |||||
| June 4 | Andankulam Village massacre: 17–20 civilians, including Ven. Bakamune Subaddalanakara Thero, were attacked, tortured and killed by LTTE cadres in the village of Andankulam. | Andankulam, Trincomalee District | 17–20 | 17–20 | ||||
| June 11 | 22 people were killed and another 75 others were injured when two bombs were detonated simultaneously by the LTTE on two buses heading to Kantalai and Colombo respectively. The first bus was front of the Bank of Ceylon Trincomalee branch and the other in close proximity to the SP office. | Trincomalee, Trincomalee District | 22 | |||||
| June 21 | Wilgamwehera Village massacre: 9 civilians, including children, were murdered in the Wilgamwehera hamlet by LTTE cadres. | Wilgamwehera, Trincomalee District | 9 | |||||
| June 25 | Bomb exploded in a vehicle by LTTE killed 16 Sinhalese. | Sittaru, Kantalai, Trincomalee District | 16 | 16 | ||||
| July 8 | Monkey Bridge Village massacre: 15 Sinhalese villagers were shot to death by LTTE cadres. | Monkey Bridge, Trincomalee District | 15 | 15 | ||||
| July 9 | Mollipothana Village massacre: Mullipothana village was stormed at night by a group of armed LTTE cadres who killed 16 civilians most of them being women and children. | Mullipothana, Trincomalee District | 16 | |||||
| July 13 | Pavakkulam Village massacre: Nine Tamil and two Sinhalese villages were killed by four LTTE cadres who had arrived in a jeep to tract No. 16, Pavakkulam. | Pavakkulam, Trincomalee District | 2 | 9 | 11 | |||
| July 19 | Beruwil & Wadigawewa Village massacre: The villages of Beruwil and Waigawewa were stormed by large armed group of LTTE cadres numbering over 100, killing 17 villagers including women and children, as well as causing serious cut wounds to at least 5 others. | Beruwil & Wilgamwehera, Trincomalee District | 17 | |||||
| July 19 | LTTE cadres shot dead twelve Sinhalese villagers. | Wadigawewa, North Central Province | 12 | 12 | ||||
| July 22 | LTTE cadres exploded a land-mine on a civilian bus, killing 32 Sinhalese civilians and injuring 20 others. | Mammaduwa, Vavuniya District | 32 | 32 | ||||
| July 24 | A bomb exploded inside a bus proceeding from Vavuniya to Anuradhapura; killing 13 passengers and injuring 40 others. | 13 | ||||||
| July 24 | About 50 LTTE cadres entered Damana, a Sinhalese village, and killed nine persons; another 13 were injured. | Damana, Central Province | 9 | |||||
| September 17 | Kantalai massacre: LTTE cadres entered block No.4 of the Sugar Corporation, Kantalai and ten civilians were shot to death. | Kantalai, Trincomalee District | 7 | 1 | 2 | 10 | ||
| September 17 | Wadigawewa Village massacre: Following the Kantalai massacre, the village of Wadigawewa was attacked by the same group of LTTE cadres who killed 12 villagers including women and children. | Wadigawewa, Trincomalee District | 12 |
| Date | Attack | Location | Sinhalese | Tamils | Muslims | Death toll | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 February | Manthottam massacre: The village of Manthottam, which is mostly made up of Sinhalese, was attacked by a group of 50 armed LTTE cadres, who murdered eight villagers after brutally torturing them. The death toll was reduced since villagers had hid in the surrounding jungles anticipating such an attack. | Manthottam, Mannar District | 8 | - | - | 8 | [10] | |
| 7 February | Arantalawa massacre: In a night house-to-house raid LTTE cadres armed with swords, machetes, clubs and small-arms killed 27 to 28 civilians including children and women. Pregnant mothers were found hacked to death and with their necks slashed. | Arantalawa, Ampara District | ? | ? | ? | 27-28 | ||
| 7 March | Awarantalawa massacre: Six civilians were killed when the LTTE detonated a land-mine as troops were passing. Also killed were seven soldiers and four NAF soldiers. | Awarantalawa, Vavuniya District | ? | ? | ? | 17 | ||
| 22 March | Serunuwara Horowpathana massacre: LTTE cadres shot dead 26 Sinhalese villagers. | Serunuwara Horowpathana | 26 | ? | ? | 26 | ||
| 25 March | Serunuwara massacre: Armed LTTE cadres stormed Serunuwara village, mostly inhabited by Sinhalese, and herded the farming families at gunpoint to a road. They were then shot there in execution style. In total 25 villagers were killed, most of whom were women and children. | Serunuwara, Trincomalee District | 25 | - | - | 25 | ||
| 17 April | Aluth Oya massacre LTTE cadres shot dead 127 Sinhalese civilians, including 31 police and security force personnel who were travelling in 3 buses and 2 trucks to Trincomalee. The cadres clad in military uniforms stopped the vehicles and dragged out the passengers and shot them to death with automatic weapons after brutally assaulting them with clubs. Over 70 with injuries were air lifted. The dead included many children and 12 off duty security personnel. Most of the victims were families visiting their relatives for the new year. | Aluth oya, Habarana, Anuradhapura District | 127 | - | - | 127 | [11] | |
| 20 April | Jayanthipura Massacre: The majority Sinhalese village of Jayanthipura was raided by a group of armed LTTE who murdered 15 civilians including women and children. | Jayanthipura, Polonnaruwa District | 15 | - | - | 15 | ||
| 21 April | Central Bus Station Bombing A bomb detonated by militants at the central bus terminal of Colombo killed 113 civilians, two policemen and a soldier; 298 others were injured. Both the LTTE and EROS were blamed for the attack. | Pettah, Colombo District | ? | ? | ? | 116 | [12] [13] | |
| 21 April | Jayanthipura massacre: 15 Sinhalese villagers were shot dead by LTTE cadres. | Jayanthipura, Trincomalee District | 15 | ? | ? | 15 | ||
| 29 May | Attack on Kadawathmadu: A group of armed LTTE cadres raided the majority Sinhalese village of Kadawathmadu killing seven civilians and leaving five others injured. Due to the LTTE threat, the villagers slept in jungle hideouts during the night, which reduced the casualties. | Kadawathmadu, Polonnaruwa District | 7 | - | - | 7 | ||
| 2 June | Aranthalawa Massacre In the first massacre of Buddhist monks in modern Sri Lankan history, a bus carrying Buddhist monks was stopped by LTTE in Arantalawa. 32 Buddhist monks, including Chief Priest Ven. Hegoda Indrasara, were killed with only one monk surviving. | Arantalawa | 32 | - | - | 32 | [14] | |
| 5 June | Nelliady attack: In the first suicide attack by the LTTE Black Tigers, a small truck laden with explosives was driven into a Sri Lanka Army base in Nelliady, Jaffna peninsula by Vallipuram Vasanthan. Over 50 soldiers were killed along with Vasanthan. | Nelliady, Jaffna District | 50 | - | - | 50 | ||
| 11 June | Veppankulam attack: 13 civilians and a soldier were killed when a private van en route from Horowpathana to Trincomalee was blowup by a LTTE pressure mine. | Veppankulam, Trincomalee District | ? | ? | ? | 14 | ||
| 12 June | Godapotta massacre: A meeting to discuss a new temple was attacked by the LTTE, who surrounded the temple and attacked the gathering of over 175 villagers, resulting in the deaths of eight villagers; a soldier and six people were injured. | Godapotta, Polonnaruwa District | ? | ? | ? | 9 | ||
| 21 June | Godapotta massacre: The hamlet of Godapotha, a majority Sinhalese village in Polonnaruwa was raided by a group of armed LTTE cadres, killing eight villagers and injuring one. The death toll was reduced since villagers had hid in the surrounding jungles anticipating such an attack. | Godapotha, Polonnaruwa District | ? | ? | ? | 8 | ||
| 29 July | Thoppur massacre: Nine villagers were killed after being tortured by LTTE cadres armed with swords, machetes and small arms. | Thoppur, Jaffna District | ? | ? | ? | 9 | ||
| 6 October | Batticaloa: 18 Sinhalese civilians were shot dead by LTTE cadres. | Batticaloa, Batticaloa District | 18 | - | - | 18 | ||
| 6 October | Tharavi massacre: Tharavi, a majority Sinhalese village, was stormed by over 100 LTTE cadres armed with swords, machetes and small arms, who killed 25 civilians, mostly women and children including infants and pregnant mothers. | Tharavi, Batticaloa District | 25 | - | - | 25 | ||
| 6 October | Sagarapura massacre: A house-to-house massacre was carried out by LTTE cadres, clubbing children to death in front of their parents, and hacking the adults to death using sharp weapons. 27 Sinhalese villagers were shot dead. After looting their victims' homes, these were set alight, burning the wounded victims alive. Another six villagers survived the attack with serious cut wounds. | Sagarapura, Trincomalee District | 27 | - | - | 27 | ||
| 6 October | Valaichchenai massacre: 40 Sinhalese passengers in the night-mail train from Batticaloa were killed by LTTE cadres who stopped the train. | Valaichchenai, Batticaloa District | 40 | - | - | 40 | ||
| 7 October | Pottuvil Monargala Road massacre: 25 Sinhalese passengers travelling by bus were shot dead by LTTE cadres, who also killed five motorcyclists travelling along the same route. | Pottuvil, Ampara District | ? | ? | ? | 30 | ||
| 10 October | Ganthalawa massacre: Gantalawa hamlet in Kantala was attacked and 9-10 civilians murdered with three wounded by LTTE cadres armed with swords, machetes and small arms. | Ganthalawa | 9-10 | - | - | 9-10 | ||
| 15 October | Ella Kantalai massacre: Ella Kantalai, a majority Sinhalese village, was attacked by LTTE cadres armed with swords, machetes and small arms, killing 14 civilians including women and children. | Ella Kantalai, Trincomalee District | 14 | - | - | 14 | ||
| 16 October | Pulimodai massacre: A private bus was stopped by LTTE cadres, who removed the Sinhalese people killing 11 including three policemen. | Pulimodai, Trincomalee District | 11 | - | - | 11 | ||
| 19 October | Kalkudah attack: A private bus transporting Tamil passengers was blown up by a LTTE land-mine, killing 40 persons and an IPKF soldier | Kalkudah, Batticaloa District | ? | ? | ? | 41 | ||
| 9 November | Maradana bombing: 23 civilians were killed and 106 injured by LTTE cadres who exploded a bomb, another 15 were shot dead. | Maradana, Colombo District | ? | ? | ? | 38 | ||
| 11 November | Kalkuda massacre: Seven Sinhalese people selling fish were shot dead by LTTE cadres. | Kalkudah, Batticaloa District | 7 | - | - | 7 | ||
| 12 November | Cheddikulam massacre: 12 Tamil persons and 13 PLOTE members were killed when their van was blown up by an LTTE land-mine. | Cheddikulam, Vavuniya District | - | 24 | - | 24 | ||
| 15 December | Devalagodella massacre: Devalagodella and Somavathiya villages were attacked by LTTE cadres armed with small arms and sharp weapons, killing 7-9 civilians. | Devalagodella, Polonnaruwa District | ? | ? | ? | 9 | ||
| 22 December | Morawewa massacre: 5-6 Sinhalese and a Tamil were abducted and tortured to death by LTTE cadres. | Morawewa, Trincomalee District | 5 | 1 | - | 6 | ||
| 31 December | Mahadivulwewa massacre: 10 villagers were shot dead and 15 houses burnt by LTTE cadres. | Mahadivulwewa, Trincomalee District | ? | ? | ? | 10 | ||
| 31 December | Kathankadu massacre: The Muslim majority village of Kathankadu is raided by LTTE cadres armed with sharp weapons and small arms, who carried out the killing of 30 civilians, including women and children with bodies severely mutilated. | Kathankadu, Batticaloa District | - | - | 30 | 30 |
| Date | Attack | Location | Sinhalese | Tamils | Muslims | Death toll | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 17 | Maharambekulam Village massacre | 9 | 9 | [15] | ||||
| February 2 | Bogamuyaya Village massacre | 11 | 11 | |||||
| February 11 | Dutuwewa Village massacre | Dutuwewa, Polonnaruwa District | 37 | 37 | ||||
| February 11 | Singhapura Village massacre | Singhapura | 6 | 6 | ||||
| February 27 | Borawewa Village bloodbath | Borawewa, Polonnaruwa District | 38 | 38 | ||||
| August 17 | Nochchikulam Village massacre: An IDE explosion, killing eight civilians and injuring four others. | Nochchikulam, Vavuniya District | 8 |