Financial support for LTTE continues: US

Despite the LTTE’s military defeat by the Sri Lankan government in 2009, the terrorist group’s international network of sympathizers and financial support continues, the US State Department said.

The Country Reports on Terrorism issued by the US State Department said LTTE’s financial network of support had continued operations in 2015.

“The group used its international contacts and the large Tamil diaspora in North America, Europe, and Asia to procure weapons, communications, funds and other needed supplies. The group employed charities as fronts to collect and divert funds for its activities,” the report said.

It said there had been no known attacks in Sri Lanka that could verifiably be attributed to the LTTE since the end of the war but a total of 13 LTTE supporters, several of whom had allegedly planned attacks against the US and Israeli diplomatic facilities in India were arrested in Malaysia in 2014.
“Additional LTTE members were arrested in Malaysia and India in 2015, one of whom was accused of exhorting other Sri Lankans to fund and revive the LTTE,” it said.

Referring to countering violent extremism, the report said Sri Lanka continued to operate a one-year long rehabilitation program for former alleged LTTE combatants, participation in which was mandatory for a majority of the prisoners formerly held under the PTA who were released on bail.

The Country Reports on Terrorism http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/258021.pdf