Navy assists in evacuating Sick and Wounded Tamil Civilians trapped in Mullaithivu

Sri Lanka Navy has assisted in the evacuation of the sick and the wounded Tamil civilians trapped in LTTE Clutches in the un-cleared areas in Mullaithivu. During the first phase of the evacuation, 356 persons were brought safely under the Naval escort to Trincomalee for urgent medical treatment on board “MV Green Ocean” under the ICRC flag on 10th February 2009.

The evacuees, upon disembarkation, were provided with emergency medical treatment by Naval doctors and were rushed to the hospitals by the naval personnel for further treatment. Elaborate arrangements have been made to treat the sick and the injured evacuees once they reach cleared areas. Hospitals have been equipped with adequate stocks of essential drugs and specialist medical personnel are assigned to treat the sick and the wounded as they are transferred to hospitals.

Among the 356 Tamil civilians evacuated for medical treatment, there were 100 males, 139 females and 117 children. They had been languishing in pain and fear due to the LTTE’s adamant stance to hold all civilians captive in the un-cleared areas as human shields despite the repeated appeals by the International Community to free all civilians to arrive in safe areas immediately.

Another batch of sick and wounded Tamil civilians is being evacuated today under the Naval escort.

The Navy, as part of its humanitarian operations, has put in place a number of comprehensive evacuation measures to facilitate the evacuation process. Naval personnel and vessels along with stand-by rescue and medical teams are on special deployment in the North-eastern seas for assisting Tamil civilians fleeing from LTTE clutches.