ID :
74298
Fri, 08/07/2009 - 19:52
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http://m.oananews.org//node/74298
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Thailand denies Tamil Tiger leader arrested in country
BANGKOK, Aug 7 (TNA) - Thailand on Friday denied reports that the new leader of Sri Lanka's recently defeated Tamil Tiger separatists was captured ant an undisclosed location in the kingdom, while foreign media said the rebel leader was arrested in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.
The comments of the Thai government and security agencies came after Sri Lanka's Island newspaper reported that Selvarasa Pathmanathan, a foreign-based leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), was taken to Sri Lanka on Thursday for questioning after being arrested in Thailand.
Mr Pathmanathan assumed the overall leadership of LTTE following the death of its top leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, in the separatist organisation’s last stand against Sri Lankan security forces in mid-May.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said after receiving the report that he ordered Thai security agencies to seek further details on the arrest of Pathmanathan. better known as KP, while the Thai Special Branch commander Theeradej Rodphothong insisted that the LTTE head was captured in Singapore, not in Thailand.
Pol Lt-Gen Theeradej noted that Thailand was mentioned in the news report because the LTTE head formerly had a Thai wife and he usually moved among three Southeast Asian countries--Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
Gen Theeradej added that a Thai court had issued an arrest warrant against KP last November, as he was wanted by the Sri Lankan government.
Acting Thai government spokesperson Panittan Wattanayakorn earlier admitted that an initial report showed Pathmanathan had traveled in and out of Thailand because he was married to a Thai and formerly lived in the northern part of the country.
However, Agence-France-Presse (AFP) and the Associated Press (AP) later quoted the Mr Panitan as saying that Thailand’s National Intelligence Agency confirmed that Mr Pathmanathan was arrested in Kuala Lumpur Wednesday night and was transferred to Sri Lanka via Bangkok.
The Associated Press also quoted an LTTE statement that their leader was arrested Wednesday in a Kuala Lumpur hotel, but Malaysian officials declined to comment.
Where the Tamil leader was arrested remains unconfirmed. The French agency later quoted a Sri Lankan military spokesman saying only that Pathmanathan "was arrested abroad" without saying where. (TNA)
The comments of the Thai government and security agencies came after Sri Lanka's Island newspaper reported that Selvarasa Pathmanathan, a foreign-based leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), was taken to Sri Lanka on Thursday for questioning after being arrested in Thailand.
Mr Pathmanathan assumed the overall leadership of LTTE following the death of its top leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, in the separatist organisation’s last stand against Sri Lankan security forces in mid-May.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said after receiving the report that he ordered Thai security agencies to seek further details on the arrest of Pathmanathan. better known as KP, while the Thai Special Branch commander Theeradej Rodphothong insisted that the LTTE head was captured in Singapore, not in Thailand.
Pol Lt-Gen Theeradej noted that Thailand was mentioned in the news report because the LTTE head formerly had a Thai wife and he usually moved among three Southeast Asian countries--Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
Gen Theeradej added that a Thai court had issued an arrest warrant against KP last November, as he was wanted by the Sri Lankan government.
Acting Thai government spokesperson Panittan Wattanayakorn earlier admitted that an initial report showed Pathmanathan had traveled in and out of Thailand because he was married to a Thai and formerly lived in the northern part of the country.
However, Agence-France-Presse (AFP) and the Associated Press (AP) later quoted the Mr Panitan as saying that Thailand’s National Intelligence Agency confirmed that Mr Pathmanathan was arrested in Kuala Lumpur Wednesday night and was transferred to Sri Lanka via Bangkok.
The Associated Press also quoted an LTTE statement that their leader was arrested Wednesday in a Kuala Lumpur hotel, but Malaysian officials declined to comment.
Where the Tamil leader was arrested remains unconfirmed. The French agency later quoted a Sri Lankan military spokesman saying only that Pathmanathan "was arrested abroad" without saying where. (TNA)
