Lt Gen Sarath Fonseka is Sri Lanka's most successful army commander, at the helm since December 6, 2005.
Fonseka has held a large number of various staff appointments including the office of Chief of Staff of the Sri Lankan army, the post he relinquished to take reins as Commander of the Army.
On 25 April 2006, Fonseka survived an LTTE suicide bomb attack by a pregnant Tamil woman who infiltrated the army base by attending the regular maternity clinic provided for civilians at the army base military hospital. He was seriously injured and nine others were killed.
Prabhakaran may have fled: Lankan Army chief
His contribution as Deputy General Officer Commanding consisted in conducting operation, 'Riviresa' to capture Jaffna from the Tamil Tigers in December 1995. In the same type, troops commanded by Fonseka offered stiff resistance to Tamil Tigers in 2000 following the fall of Elephant Pass, ultimately having to flee the place not able to withstand the attack.
Fonseka, was also involved in the operations 'Balawegaya' and 'Jayasikuru', which led to the capture of the Elephant Pass and Mankulam. The 6th Battalion of his Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment, which was under siege at Elephant Pass in 1991 and reinforcements repulsed the LTTE attack. He was wounded in 1993 in the Yaldewee operation.
As a Colonel, Fonseka commanded the 23 Brigade of the Sri Lankan Army at Polonnaruwa in 1993. Among other appointments, he held included Colonel, General Staff Army Headquarters, Sri Lankan Army; Centre Commandant, Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment; Brigade Commander in Operation Ballavegaya; Deputy Commandant - 5 Brigade Group, Mannar and Coordinating Officer for Gampaha Gum Gumaga.
In 1993, as the Jaffna Fort was under siege for a long period, the then Colonel G S C Fonseka led troops in the "Midnight Express" (not a train name) operation to rescue the besieged troops. Incidentally, the incumbent Secretary of Defence Lieutenant Colonel Gotabhaya Rajapaksa was with him. Several hundred soldiers were saved in this fleeing operation.
Source: Wikipedia
| Slide Shows | Columns | Calendar
Share | 
Print | Rate 
