Sri Lankan situation worries Australia

Australia has called on the Sri Lankan government to honour its commitment to stop
using heavy weaponry that could kill civilians in its battle against Tamil Tiger
rebels.
On Sunday, the Tamil Tigers, or the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),
admitted their battle for an independent ethnic homeland had reached its "bitter
end".
The statement signalled that Asia's longest running civil war was all but over.
The rebels' leadership is holed up in an area of less than 24 hectares of jungle on
the northeast coast of Sri Lanka, surrounded by government forces.
But appeals for peace talks, rather than a surrender, were flatly rejected by the
government, with the defence ministry saying troops were being sent in to crush the
last diehard fighters and recapture "every inch of land".
There have been significant civilian casualties in recent months as government
forces advanced on the increasingly small pocket of northern Sri Lanka held by the
rebels.
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith on Monday again expressed Australia's grave concern
about the humanitarian situation in northern Sri Lanka.
"Australia has said repeatedly that the safety and protection of civilians must be
the absolute priority for all sides," Mr Smith said.
"The government of Sri Lanka must implement in full its commitment to cease using
heavy artillery and combat aircraft in operations that could cause civilian
casualties.
"Australia is aware of reports that the LTTE has announced its intention to silence
its guns and calls therefore on the LTTE to lay down arms."