Between 1:30 and 1:55 am on Saturday 29 November 2008 the TRO
Kallaru Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp (also called:
Tharumapuram Kallaru Ranimayanathan Scheme or Ulavanoor
Kudiyiruppu settlement) was bombed by the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF).
The SLAF dropped 16 Russian made cluster bombs killing two civilians (a
5 year old child and an 80 year old man) and injuring 19 others (10
children were among the injured). A 77-year-old woman lost her left arm
and a 39-year-old man lost his left leg.

The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) ordered departure of the UN and
international NGOs from the Vanni on 15 September 2008 has removed the
independent, international witness to attacks such as these against civilians.
TRO appeals to the international community and the Tamil Diaspora to
pressure the GoSL to allow the UN and international NGOs to return to the
Vanni on a permanent basis so that they may provide humanitarian
assistance to the 300,000 IDPs, conduct needs assessments, and serve as a
witness to the sufferings of and attacks on Tamil civilians.

The temporary housing settlement that was attacked on 29 November was
constructed and is maintained by TRO and local NGO REERDO for
families that had been displaced due to the Government of Sri Lanka’s
(GoSL) ongoing military offensive into the Vanni. The settlement was set
up in an area that the GoSL had declared to be a “safe zone” at the
beginning of November.

These IDPs were also affected by Cyclone Nisha’s floodwaters last week
and were being provided with cooked food and other support by TRO.
After the bombing, TRO helped to transport the injured to hospitals in the
area. TRO also covered the expenses of the funeral and the final rites for the
two persons killed in the bombing.