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Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
Organization and Leadership
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Members of the LTTE.
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The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
is the principal insurgency organization fighting for the establishment
of an ethnic Tamil state on the island of Sri Lanka. The group utilizes
a variety of political, military, and terrorist tactics in its fight
against the Sinhalese-controlled Sri Lankan government and military.
The LTTE has also been known to target the country's economic infrastructure.
The LTTE is a highly structured organization with an active political
wing and a military structure that mimics that of a professional army.
The military branch includes its own intelligence unit, a small air
force, and a naval unit known as the Sea Tigers. Most renowned of
the military units is the Black Tiger Squad, which is notorious for
its ruthless suicide attacks. All members of the Black Tigers are
required to carry a cyanide capsule to escape government capture.
It is estimated that the Tigers have 10,000 members under arms, with
perhaps 3000 to 6000 highly trained troops, and the LTTE enjoys strong
financial, organizational, and procurement support from Tamil groups
overseas. The nominal head of the LTTE is Velupillai Prabhakaran.
The group is firmly in control of Sri Lanka's northern and eastern
coastal areas and is able to execute operations throughout the island.
Click here
for a detailed breakdown of the military capacity of both the LTTE
and the Sri Lankan government.
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What's Next:
Ideology
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