(Lanka-e-News 13.Dec.2009 8.30PM) Gen. Sarath Fonseka the common Presidential candidate said today (13) when addressing a Press briefing at the JAIC Hilton Hotel, that he did not state that Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapakse gave orders to kill those who LTTE ers who came to surrender during the last phase of the war.
The General told this when answering a question raised by a media personnel with reference to a news item appearing in today’s Sunday Leader newspaper.
He told he has been misquoted in the news. The question asked from me was what action Gotabaya and Basil Rajapakse took when several LTTE leaders were preparing to come forward with white flags to surrender on 17th May 2009 after Basil and Gotabaya were informed of such a move by the LTTE leaders through the Norwegians.?
The answer I gave was, ‘I did not know the story of the LTTE leaders trying to surrender carrying the white flags. I came to know of this later through the media. That was known only between the two of them , as expressed by the media. T he media revealed to me , the Defense Secretary had instructed a high officer in the war operations not to allow anyone to escape whether they came with or without a white flag.
This is a story heard by you from others in the same way as I heard. Due to the security and safety of the media personnel who told me this , I cannot disclose his name. These details were revealed to me by a Media personnel who was on the battlefield on that day. The Defense secretary has instructed the high Army Officer over the phone.’
The General told this when answering a question raised by a media personnel with reference to a news item appearing in today’s Sunday Leader newspaper.
He told he has been misquoted in the news. The question asked from me was what action Gotabaya and Basil Rajapakse took when several LTTE leaders were preparing to come forward with white flags to surrender on 17th May 2009 after Basil and Gotabaya were informed of such a move by the LTTE leaders through the Norwegians.?
The answer I gave was, ‘I did not know the story of the LTTE leaders trying to surrender carrying the white flags. I came to know of this later through the media. That was known only between the two of them , as expressed by the media. T he media revealed to me , the Defense Secretary had instructed a high officer in the war operations not to allow anyone to escape whether they came with or without a white flag.
This is a story heard by you from others in the same way as I heard. Due to the security and safety of the media personnel who told me this , I cannot disclose his name. These details were revealed to me by a Media personnel who was on the battlefield on that day. The Defense secretary has instructed the high Army Officer over the phone.’
