(NSI News Source Info) February 1, 2009: The Sri Lankan military has said it will move to "liberate" thousands of civilians in Tamil Tiger rebel areas.
The announcement came after the expiry of a 48-hour government truce for civilians to leave the combat zone.
International concern has grown over the safety of civilians trapped behind the lines during recent heavy fighting.
Meanwhile, the government has warned it will expel diplomats, aid agencies and journalists it deems biased in favour of the Tamil Tigers.
An army offensive has pushed the rebels into a 300-sq-km (110-sq-mile) corner of jungle in the north-east of the island, which aid agencies say also holds 250,000 civilians. 
The army secured the strategic Elephant Pass on 9 January, sandwiched between the capture of the rebels' de facto capital, Kilinochchi, and Mullaitivu.
The agencies say the people are facing a desperate situation, with hundreds killed in combat in recent days and food supplies running low.
The government says the number of civilians is closer to 120,000 and that the army has a policy of not firing at civilians.
The Sri Lankan government accuses the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) of not allowing civilians to leave, saying they are being used as human shields.
The rebels say the civilians prefer to stay where they are under Tamil Tiger "protection".
The reports can not be independently confirmed as neither side allows journalists near the war zone.
'Utmost care'
Officials said about 300 civilians had crossed into government-held territory during the 48-hour truce, which expired late Saturday.
"We will now have to save the civilians and move in," the spokesman, Kaheliya Rambukwella, said.
"It is now very evident that [Tamil Tiger leader Valupillai] Prabhakaran is... using civilians as cover," Mr Rambukwella said.
"We will take the utmost care of civilians when we move in."
The military has captured the key towns of Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and the strategically important Elephant Pass to the Jaffna peninsula in recent weeks.
The BBC's Ethirajan Anbarasan has been in the city of Jaffna on one of the first government-approved media trips to the city - the cultural capital of Sri Lanka's Tamil community - in months. 
The army captured the last remaining major rebel base of Mullaitivu on 25 January. BBC reporter Chris Morris, who was taken to Mullaitivu, says it is a ghost town, full of broken buildings.
He said thousands of people had attended a rally held by a pro-government Tamil party calling for the rebels to allow civilians to leave the war zone.
Meanwhile a senior government official warned that diplomats, aid agencies and media, including the BBC, will be expelled from Sri Lanka if they seem to favour the Tamil Tiger rebels.
Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said bias among some foreigners was damaging security forces as they dealt the "final blow" to the rebels. 
The Sri Lankan army says it is continuing to make advances in its offensive against the Tamil Tigers in the north-east.
In an interview with the Sunday Island newspaper, Mr Rajapaksa accused the ambassadors of Switzerland and Germany, and news organisations the BBC, CNN and Al-Jazeera of being biased. "They will be chased away [if they try] to give a second wind to the LTTE terrorists at a time when the security forces, at heavy cost, are dealing them the final blow," he was quoted as saying.
Mr Rajapaksa said the media organisations were sensationalising civilian hardships by playing video clips from Tamil Tiger websites.
The army secured the strategic Elephant Pass on 9 January, sandwiched between the capture of the rebels' de facto capital, Kilinochchi, and Mullaitivu.
The agencies say the people are facing a desperate situation, with hundreds killed in combat in recent days and food supplies running low.
The government says the number of civilians is closer to 120,000 and that the army has a policy of not firing at civilians.
The Sri Lankan government accuses the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) of not allowing civilians to leave, saying they are being used as human shields.
The rebels say the civilians prefer to stay where they are under Tamil Tiger "protection".
The reports can not be independently confirmed as neither side allows journalists near the war zone.
'Utmost care'
Officials said about 300 civilians had crossed into government-held territory during the 48-hour truce, which expired late Saturday.
"We will now have to save the civilians and move in," the spokesman, Kaheliya Rambukwella, said.
"It is now very evident that [Tamil Tiger leader Valupillai] Prabhakaran is... using civilians as cover," Mr Rambukwella said.
"We will take the utmost care of civilians when we move in."
The military has captured the key towns of Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and the strategically important Elephant Pass to the Jaffna peninsula in recent weeks.
The BBC's Ethirajan Anbarasan has been in the city of Jaffna on one of the first government-approved media trips to the city - the cultural capital of Sri Lanka's Tamil community - in months. The army captured the last remaining major rebel base of Mullaitivu on 25 January. BBC reporter Chris Morris, who was taken to Mullaitivu, says it is a ghost town, full of broken buildings.
He said thousands of people had attended a rally held by a pro-government Tamil party calling for the rebels to allow civilians to leave the war zone.
Meanwhile a senior government official warned that diplomats, aid agencies and media, including the BBC, will be expelled from Sri Lanka if they seem to favour the Tamil Tiger rebels.
Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said bias among some foreigners was damaging security forces as they dealt the "final blow" to the rebels. The Sri Lankan army says it is continuing to make advances in its offensive against the Tamil Tigers in the north-east.
In an interview with the Sunday Island newspaper, Mr Rajapaksa accused the ambassadors of Switzerland and Germany, and news organisations the BBC, CNN and Al-Jazeera of being biased. "They will be chased away [if they try] to give a second wind to the LTTE terrorists at a time when the security forces, at heavy cost, are dealing them the final blow," he was quoted as saying.
Mr Rajapaksa said the media organisations were sensationalising civilian hardships by playing video clips from Tamil Tiger websites. 
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