COLOMBO: Sri Lankas navy commander Clancy Fernando was assassinated by a suspected Tamil militant riding a motorcycle which carried a bomb according to military sources.
The attacker suspected to be an LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) suicide bomber was also killed in the explosion which occurred in Central Colombo.
Fernando’s bodyguard and driver were also killed.
The attacker who was riding alongside Fernando’s car might have either rammed Fernando’s vehicle or setoff the explosives by a switch the sources said
The blast occurred outside the TAJ Samudra hotel in the high security Galle Face area where the visiting New Zealand cricket team is staying.
The main defence and army headquarters as well as president Premadasas secretariat and several deluxe hotels are situated in this area
It was the most serious rebel attack in Colombo since deputy defence minister Ranjan Wijeratne was killed in a similar explosion in the city in May last year sources said.
The military had warned of the possibility of a bomb attack in Colombo after the arrest of two rebel suspects.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 27, 1992
