Red Cross Seeks Fate of Hijacked Ferry
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The International Committee of the Red Cross, at the request of Sri Lanka, is trying to determine the fate of up to 144 people aboard a ferry hijacked by Tamil rebels, officials said Thursday.
The agency has contacted the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and is awaiting a reply, according to Paul Fruh, the agency’s deputy in Colombo.
The state-run ferry, which shuttled between northwest islands and the eastern port of Trincomalee, was hijacked Monday evening.
Navy gunboats sent to inspect the vessel were fired upon, a military spokesman, said. Twenty-one navy personnel were missing and presumed dead.
A 3-month-old cease-fire between the government and the Tamil rebels, who seek a separate homeland in northeastern Sri Lanka, broke down in April.
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