Thursday, October 19, 2006, 13:49 GMT, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
The mine was discovered within 15 km of Colombo.
Oct 19, Colombo: The discovery of an 8 kg claymore mine this morning in Mahara forced the closure of the heavily traveled Colombo-Kandy road. The road was reopened after the Sri Lanka Army’s bomb disposal unit successfully defused the bomb.
Around 9 AM, a three-wheeler driver reported a suspicious parcel left at the Pushparama junction to police personnel at the Kadawatha police station.
Civilians were evacuated from the area and the Colombo-Kandy main road was closed until the Army bomb disposal unit could arrive. The mine was defused by 10 AM and the road was reopened for normal traffic. The Kadawatha Police are continuing investigations in the area.
The Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence meanwhile accused the LTTE of “another cowardly attempt” to commit “mass murder of civilians” on a weekday morning in this populated area. Kadawatha is only 15 km east of the capital city of Colombo.
The incident follows on the heels of two deadly suicide attacks this week – first on a naval convoy on Monday and then on the Dakshina Naval Base in Galle yesterday – which have left over 100 people dead.
This week has also brought high-level officials from Japan, Norway, and the United States, all of whom have arrived to push for peace negotiations in the wake of increasing violence throughout the country.
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