Operation Jayasikurui

Part of the Sri Lankan civil war

Date	13 May 1997 – 1999
Location	Sri Lanka
Result	Sri Lankan military successful victory. LTTE lost their main strongholds, including Kilinochchi.

Belligerents

Military of Sri Lanka

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

Commanders and leaders

Chandrika Kumaratunga

Velupillai Prabhakaran

Strength

5 divisions

Unknown

Casualties and losses

1,350 killed; 4,000 wounded (SLA claim)
3,000+ killed (LTTE claim)

3,614 killed; 1,899 wounded (SLA claim)
1,500 killed (LTTE claim)

Operation Jayasikurui (Certain Victory in Sinhala), was a Sri Lankan military action launched on 13 May 1997; it lasted until it was called off in 1999. The primary objective of this operation was to clear a land route to the government-held Jaffna peninsula (which had no land supply routes) through territory held by the LTTE (or Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, popularly known as the Tamil Tigers), by linking the government-held towns of Vavuniya and Kilinochchi. At the time it was the largest military operation undertaken by the Sri Lankan military.

Following Operation Riviresa in 1995, the Sri Lankan military gained control over the Jaffna peninsula. The LTTE withdrew to the jungles of the Wanni from where in 1996 they launched an attack on the isolated Sri Lanka Army (SLA) garrison in Mullaitivu. After the Battle of Mullaitivu the LTTE gained control over the Mullaitivu district, since the government did not re-establish a base due to the lack of a land supply route to it. Instead, at the request of the deputy minister of defence, Gen. Anurudha Ratwatte, the military forces began to plan a large-scale operation to open a land route to Jaffna.

The operation launched on 13 May 1997, with the 53rd Division spearheading the offensive along with the 21st, 54th, 55th and 56th Divisions. It was preceded by a massive artillery and aerial bombardment, with the SLA breaking out of their fortifications at Vavuniya and Manal Aru and pushing into LTTE-controlled Vanni.

The stated objective of the operation was to capture the A9 Highway, running from Vavuniya to the Jaffna peninsula, thereby allowing the establishment of a main supply route (MSR) to the SLA's isolated Jaffna garrison. It was also meant to engage and draw the LTTE out of its secure jungle bases. The Tigers could then be crippled, if not destroyed, by the SLA's superior firepower. The SLA wanted to diminish the strength of the LTTE by the end of the year so that it had to fight only a low-intensity guerrilla war.

The operation was very ambitious from the start, requiring large numbers of troops for both offensive operations and the defense of the captured territory. As a result, units of the Sri Lanka Navy and the Sri Lanka Air Force were deployed for ground operations in support of the SLA.

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Wikipedia