A tense situation is reported to have arisen along the Ampara - Kalmunai road after police riot squad fired tear gas on protesting villagers in order to disperse them a short while ago.

Around 500 villagers burnt tyres and organised a hartal which caused the road to be shut down for close to 36 hours.

A clash between Special Task Force (STF) personnel and villagers is said to have caused the unrest.

According to reports the villagers had initially resisted an STF camp located in Karatheevu.

Thereafter the villagers alleged that robberies and other nefarious incidents were on the rise in Nindavur.

On Monday night the villagers had caught STF personnel in civilian clothing while they were attempting to steal, a source based in the area said.  

Thereafter the agitated villagers had begun to assault the officers after which STF personnel in uniform had intervened and attempted to  rescue their colleagues.

This resulted in a standoff between villagers and the STF with shots being fired into the air and the ground by the STF.

Thereafter the villagers took to the streets and burnt tires shutting the main road down.

Police spokesman SSP Ajith Rohana said that 300 police officers were deployed this morning to disperse the protesters.

" The situation is now under control and the road has been opened for commuters" he said.

No injuries have been reported yet (Hafeel Farisz)
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