Sri Lanka: Overview

Travel Warning: Tamil Tensions - Suicide Bombing - Monsoon Season

Fighting between the Sri Lankan military and the LTTE (Tamil Tigers), following the breakdown of their ceasefire agreement in January, continues to make travel to certain regions very dangerous. Twenty-four Tamil Tiger rebels were reportedly killed in late July; more than 30 rebels and six Sri Lankan soldiers were killed in clashes on June 22. Travellers should stay well clear of the Jaffna, Mannar, Welioya, and Vavuniya regions.

Gunmen fired at a passenger bus near the southern town of Buttala on July 10 resulting in four deaths and injuries to 25 people. The region is known as a homeland for Tamil Tigers and should be avoided; a bomb attack on a bus in the same area led to 26 deaths in January.

A suicide bombing on June 16 killed 12 people and injured many in the country's northern town Vavuniya. Reports indicate a man on a motorcycle detonated the bomb in front of the town's police station, 250 km (120mi) from Colombo.

On 4 February, another bus was targeted near the town of Anuradhapura, resulting in at least 13 deaths; and on 2 February a bus in Dambulla was bombed, causing 18 fatalities. In April, a suicide bomb attack near Colombo killed some 14 people and seriously injured more than 90.

Areas north of a line following the highway from Puttalam through Anuradhapura to Trincomalee, and east down to Batticaloa are unsafe for travellers as are the eastern areas around Ampara and Arugam Bay. Any travel to these areas should be reconsidered. The security situation in the Jaffna Peninsula remains especially volatile, with heavy fighting between the Sri Lankan army and Tamil Tiger rebels ongoing. Parts of these northern and eastern areas are heavily mined.

For further updates check this Safe Travel site.

The capital, Colombo , has experienced a number of bombings over the last few months. Most recently, on 26 May, a peak-hour commuter train was bombed, causing eight deaths and more than 70 injuries. On 3 February, a suicide bomber killed at least 11 people and injured nearly 100 at Colombo's main train station, while an explosion killed at least 16 civilians in a busy shopping district on 28 November. Travellers should exercise extreme caution, monitor local news sources and heed any local warnings regarding safety.

severity: Extreme Danger