The LTTE have admitted for the first time that their leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is dead.
A spokesman for the group also told the BBC that it would now use non-violent methods to fight for Tamils’ rights.
Sri Lanka’s army last week released pictures it said showed Prabhakaran’s body after its final offensive.
The statement from the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) said he was killed “fighting the military oppression of the Sri Lankan government” last Sunday.
The statement was signed by the defeated group’s head of international relations, Selvarasa Pathmanathan.
It said that the LTTE had declared a week of mourning for their dead leader, starting on 25 May.
In a telephone interview with the BBC, Mr Pathmanathan said Prabhakaran had died on 17 May but did not give details of the circumstances.
“We have already announced that we have given up violence and agreed to enter a democratic process to achieve the rights for the Tamil (self) determination of our people,” he said.
BBC
A spokesman for the group also told the BBC that it would now use non-violent methods to fight for Tamils’ rights.
Sri Lanka’s army last week released pictures it said showed Prabhakaran’s body after its final offensive.
The statement from the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) said he was killed “fighting the military oppression of the Sri Lankan government” last Sunday.
The statement was signed by the defeated group’s head of international relations, Selvarasa Pathmanathan.
It said that the LTTE had declared a week of mourning for their dead leader, starting on 25 May.
In a telephone interview with the BBC, Mr Pathmanathan said Prabhakaran had died on 17 May but did not give details of the circumstances.
“We have already announced that we have given up violence and agreed to enter a democratic process to achieve the rights for the Tamil (self) determination of our people,” he said.
BBC
