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{{Infobox civilian attack
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = St. Philip Neri Church shelling
| title = St. Philip Neri Church shelling
| image = Allaipiddy Displaced.jpeg
| image = Allaipiddy Displaced.jpeg
| caption = The [[Roman Catholic]] church which provided shelter to the refugees after the [[Allaipiddy massacre]] and during the subsequent shelling
| caption = The [[Roman Catholic]] church which provided shelter to the refugees after the [[Allaipiddy massacre]] and during the subsequent shelling
| location = [[Allaipiddy]], [[Jaffna|Jaffna district]], [[Sri Lanka]]
| location = [[Allaipiddy]], [[Jaffna|Jaffna district]], [[Sri Lanka]]
| coordinates =
| coordinates =
| target = [[Sri Lankan Tamil]] refugees
| target = [[Sri Lankan Tamil]] refugees
| date = August 13, 2006
| date = 13 August 2006
| time =
| time =
| timezone = +6 GMT
| timezone = +6 GMT
| type = Artillery fire
| type = Artillery fire
| fatalities = 15
| fatalities = 36
| injuries =
| injuries =
| perps = [[Sri Lankan Army]]
| perps = [[Sri Lankan Army]]
⚫
| susperps =
[[Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam|LTTE]] (Government claim)
⚫
| weapons = Artillery shells
⚫
| susperps =
⚫
| weapons = Artillery shells
}}
}}


The '''St. Philip Neri Church shelling''' occurred when St. Philip Neri Church in [[Allaipiddy]] village, off the coast of [[Sri Lanka]]'s [[Jaffna Peninsula]], was shelled on August 13, 2006, allegedly by the [[Sri Lankan Army]].<ref name=CWM>{{cite news |first=Anto |last=Akkara |title=Peace deferred |url=http://www.cwmission.org.uk/features/default.cfm?FeatureID=3074 |publisher=[[Council for World Mission]] |date=2007-06-21 |access-date=2007-08-21 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070818014544/http://www.cwmission.org.uk/features/default.cfm?FeatureID=3074 <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 2007-08-18}}</ref> The attack killed at least 15 people and injured as many as 54 others.<ref name=AI>{{cite web |url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/Winter_2006/The_Killing_Match/page.do?id=1105573&n1=2&n2=19&n3=441 |title=The Killing Match |access-date=2007-08-21 |year=2006 |work=[[Amnesty International]] Magazine |publisher=[[Amnesty International]]}}</ref>
The '''St. Philip Neri Church shelling''' occurred when St. Philip Neri Church in [[Allaipiddy]] village, off the coast of [[Sri Lanka]]'s [[Jaffna Peninsula]], was shelled on 13 August 2006 by the [[Sri Lanka Army|Sri Lankan Army]]. The shelling killed 36 [[Sri Lankan Tamils|Tamil civilians]] and injured as many as 54.


==Background==
==Background==
Line 24: Line 23:


==Incident==
==Incident==
In the morning of August 12, 2006, LTTE cadres landed near Allaipiddy, prompting government forces to withdraw to the nearby [[Sri Lankan Navy|Navy]] base.<ref name=UTHR/><ref name=ASINN>{{cite news |title=Hell in the north: church and children's home destroyed |url=http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=6949 |work=AsiaNews.it |date=2006-08-14 |access-date=2007-08-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929083436/http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=6949 |archive-date=2007-09-29 }}</ref> The [[Sri Lankan Army]] then commenced shelling LTTE positions, continuing through the night. According to a local human rights organization, the [[University Teachers for Human Rights]] (UTHR), security forces did not know the strength of LTTE forces in the area and "let loose their shells and [[MBRL]]s not caring an iota for the civilians".<ref name=UTHR/>
On the morning of 12 August 2006, LTTE cadres landed near Allaipiddy, prompting government forces to withdraw to the nearby Navy base.<ref name=UTHR/><ref name=ASINN>{{cite news |title=Hell in the north: church and children's home destroyed |url=http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=6949 |work=AsiaNews.it |date=2006-08-14 |access-date=2007-08-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929083436/http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=6949 |archive-date=2007-09-29 }}</ref> The Sri Lankan Army then commenced shelling LTTE positions, continuing through the night. By midnight, the LTTE called off its offensive and left Allaipiddy. However, the Army and the Navy kept firing indiscriminately on the area; and on the early morning of 13th August long range artillery shells from the army camps in [[Jaffna|Jaffna town]] and [[Palaly Military Base|Palaly]] fell on the St. Philip Neri Church at 04:30 am, killing 20 Tamil civilians and injuring 54. The final death roll rose up to 36 in the following days.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jeyaraj |first=D.B.S. |date=20 August 2016 |title=When a Tamil Catholic Priest went Missing in Jaffna Ten years Ago |url=https://www.dailymirror.lk/dbs-jeyaraj-column/When-a-Tamil-Catholic-Priest-went-Missing-in-Jaffna-Ten-years-Ago/192-114412 |website=Daily Mirror}}</ref><ref name="UTHR" /><ref name="AI">{{cite web |year=2006 |title=The Killing Match |url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/Winter_2006/The_Killing_Match/page.do?id=1105573&n1=2&n2=19&n3=441 |access-date=2007-08-21 |work=[[Amnesty International]] Magazine |publisher=[[Amnesty International]]}}</ref>


==Aftermath==
On August 13, 2006, at 04:30, an artillery shell fell on the church, killing at least 15 people and injuring up to 54.<ref name=AI/><ref name=UTHR/><ref name=CO/> The wounded were taken to [[Jaffna]] for treatment by a priest, Father [[Thiruchelvam Nihal Jim Brown]],<ref name=UTHR/> who subsequently relocated 300 families from Allaipiddy to St. Mary's Church in [[Kayts]]. He [[forced disappearance|disappeared]] on August 20, a week after the shelling.<ref name=CO/><ref name=PWS>{{cite news |title=Sri Lankan priest disappears as civilian toll mounts |url=http://www.gardinerstparish.ie/index.php?artid=2616&option=com_cifeed&task=newsarticle |publisher=St Francis Xavier's Church |access-date=2007-08-19}}</ref>
The wounded civilians were prevented from being taken to the Jaffna Hospital for treatment by the hostile Navy at Allaipiddy junction but were allowed to proceed after pleading by the Catholic priest Fr. [[Thiruchelvam Nihal Jim Brown]] and the Acting Magistrate of [[Kayts]]. On 20th August, Fr. Brown [[Enforced disappearance|disappeared]] at Allaipiddy checkpoint, suspected to be at the hands of local Navy men who had become suspicious of him following the church shelling.<ref name="UTHR" />


⚫
The Army denied responsibility for the shelling of the church and suggested that the LTTE was to blame. However, according to the former<ref name="PWS">{{cite news |title=Sri Lankan priest disappears as civilian toll mounts |url=http://www.gardinerstparish.ie/index.php?artid=2616&option=com_cifeed&task=newsarticle |access-date=2007-08-19 |publisher=St Francis Xavier's Church}}</ref> parish priest of Allaipiddy, most people believe that the church was hit by fire from government forces.<ref name="ASINN" /> The [[University Teachers for Human Rights|UTHR(J)]] reported that survivors claimed that the shelling came from a military base in Palaly.<ref name="UTHR" /> [[AsiaNews]] repeated this claim.<ref name="ASINN" />
==Responsibility==
⚫
The Army denied responsibility for the shelling of the church and suggested that the LTTE was to blame. However, according to the former<ref name=PWS/> parish priest of Allaipiddy, most people believe that the church was hit by fire from government forces.<ref name=ASINN/> The UTHR reported that survivors claimed that the shelling came from a military base in Palaly.<ref name=UTHR/> [[AsiaNews]] repeated this claim.<ref name=ASINN/>


== See also ==
== See also ==

Revision as of 23:25, 26 June 2024

St. Philip Neri Church shelling
The Roman Catholic church which provided shelter to the refugees after the Allaipiddy massacre and during the subsequent shelling
LocationAllaipiddy, Jaffna district, Sri Lanka
Date13 August 2006 (+6 GMT)
TargetSri Lankan Tamil refugees
Attack type
Artillery fire
WeaponsArtillery shells
Deaths36
PerpetratorsSri Lankan Army

The St. Philip Neri Church shelling occurred when St. Philip Neri Church in Allaipiddy village, off the coast of Sri Lanka's Jaffna Peninsula, was shelled on 13 August 2006 by the Sri Lankan Army. The shelling killed 36 Tamil civilians and injured as many as 54.

Background

As tensions increased between the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Sri Lankan Army, small clashes took place near Allaipiddy. It is believed that the LTTE was planning to overrun Jaffna.[1] Hundreds of civilians took shelter in St. Philip Neri Church because of the fighting and to avoid shelling.[2]

Incident

On the morning of 12 August 2006, LTTE cadres landed near Allaipiddy, prompting government forces to withdraw to the nearby Navy base.[1][3] The Sri Lankan Army then commenced shelling LTTE positions, continuing through the night. By midnight, the LTTE called off its offensive and left Allaipiddy. However, the Army and the Navy kept firing indiscriminately on the area; and on the early morning of 13th August long range artillery shells from the army camps in Jaffna town and Palaly fell on the St. Philip Neri Church at 04:30 am, killing 20 Tamil civilians and injuring 54. The final death roll rose up to 36 in the following days.[4][1][5]

Aftermath

The wounded civilians were prevented from being taken to the Jaffna Hospital for treatment by the hostile Navy at Allaipiddy junction but were allowed to proceed after pleading by the Catholic priest Fr. Thiruchelvam Nihal Jim Brown and the Acting Magistrate of Kayts. On 20th August, Fr. Brown disappeared at Allaipiddy checkpoint, suspected to be at the hands of local Navy men who had become suspicious of him following the church shelling.[1]

The Army denied responsibility for the shelling of the church and suggested that the LTTE was to blame. However, according to the former[6] parish priest of Allaipiddy, most people believe that the church was hit by fire from government forces.[3] The UTHR(J) reported that survivors claimed that the shelling came from a military base in Palaly.[1] AsiaNews repeated this claim.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "From Welikade to Mutur and Pottuvil: A Generation of Moral Denudation and the Rise of Heroes with Feet of Clay". University Teachers for Human Rights. 2007-05-31. Retrieved 2007-08-19.
  2. ^ "Sri Lanka church shelled in government attack on rebels". Catholic Online. 2006-08-14. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-08-16.
  3. ^ a b c "Hell in the north: church and children's home destroyed". AsiaNews.it. 2006-08-14. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-08-18.
  4. ^ Jeyaraj, D.B.S. (20 August 2016). "When a Tamil Catholic Priest went Missing in Jaffna Ten years Ago". Daily Mirror.
  5. ^ "The Killing Match". Amnesty International Magazine. Amnesty International. 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-21.
  6. ^ "Sri Lankan priest disappears as civilian toll mounts". St Francis Xavier's Church. Retrieved 2007-08-19.

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