Doctor says 49 killed in Sri Lanka hospital attack

Source: AP


BY RAVI NESSMAN • ASSOCIATED PRESS • MAY 12, 2009

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — A mortar shell struck the only functioning medical facility in Sri Lanka’s northern war zone Tuesday morning, killing 49 patients and bystanders and wounding more than 50 others, a government health official in the area said.

The attack came after a weekend of heavy shelling that killed hundreds of civilians trapped in the war zone. The military has denied accusations that it was still shelling the tiny coastal strip still under rebel control, which is packed with an estimated 50,000 civilians.

Dr. Thurairaja Varatharajah, the top government health official in the war zone, said a single mortar shell hit the admissions ward in the makeshift hospital Tuesday morning. In addition to the 49 killed, scores of others were injured — many with head and stomach wounds — and he expected the death toll to rise, he said.

Shells were still hitting the area hours later, including one that landed about 150 yards (meters) from the hospital, Varatharajah said.

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