The LTTE carried out an abortive air raid on the Trincomalee Naval Base around 9 p.m. last night. According to the official Defense Ministry website, the LTTE aircraft had dropped two improvised bombs and fled the area. At the time of going to press, unconfirmed reports cited around 18 injured.
Navy Spokesman D.K.P Dassanayake stated that they had received reports of the attack three minutes before the planes were sighted in Trincomalee. “So we attacked it when it approached, but it dropped two bombs and flew away. One did not explode but the other fell near Navy quarters.”
The military noted that the LTTE could have been targeting troops boarding a Jaffna bound ship as the aircraft flew via Mullaitivu coastline and was first detected by Trinco radars at 8.45pm.
Highly placed Naval source told The Bottom Line that the two bombs had been dropped inside the training facility. There were no deaths reported, although there are a number of casualties. The Navy had retaliated but the firing ceased within a short while according to reports.
Meanwhile, TMVP spokesman Azad Moulana reported sounds of heavy explosions in Trincomalee lasting for around half-an-hour. He added that electricity had been cut off and accused the LTTE for the attack.
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