DAILY UPDATE on SRI LANKA – Fighting in the northeast
area of Sri Lanka made it impossible for the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) to deliver food supplies to the civilians trapped within the zone
on 12 May. There have been reports that 1,039 internally displaced peoples have
escaped the zone and crossed over to the government controlled area of
Omanthai. However, tens of thousands remain.

On 11 May the
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed concerns over the rising
number of casualties in the conflict zone of Sri Lanka. France, UK and US also followed.

The US President
Barack Obama addressed the issue on 13 May. He urged the Sri Lankan government
to "give United Nations humanitarian teams access to the civilians who are
trapped between the warring parties".

Also on the day,
the UN Security Council released their press statement on the issue, demanding all
parties to "respect their obligations under international humanitarian law".

While condemning "the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for its acts of terrorism",
the council said to "acknowledge the legitimate right of the Government of Sri
Lanka to combat terrorism".