By James A. Mitchell, VeAhavta Press Officer

During the early days of August, Grace Care Center manager Diane McLaughlin took the orphan children into the water as often as possible.
"They can't hear the bombings because of the waves," McLaughlin said of the Indian Ocean's roar. Even a few minutes' break from the sounds of war was a welcome period during a restless week.
Renewed hostilities between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Tamil Tigers) reportedly began in late July, when the military moved into Mutur to reopen a sluice gate -- a controlling system for water supply -- that had been taken over by the Tigers. The days that followed witnessed the first major military clash since the 2002 ceasefire.
Early reports vary as to details, but more than 120 casualties resulted from a two-way confrontation: The LTTE moved into the government-held town of Mutur -- about six miles across the harbor from Trincomalee; the Sri Lankan military targeted Tiger compounds just to the north with artillery, multi-barreled rockets and fighter jets.
The view from Grace Care may have seen the relative peace of Trincomalee, but the soundtrack was decidedly that of war. McLaughlin said that the duration and magnitude of the conflict feels different than during previous periods of tension or acts of war. In January, five Tamil boys were shot in Trincomalee, apparently by GoSL troops; in April a series of claymore attacks added to the escalating casualties. More than 850 conflict-created deaths have been reported in the small island nation for 2006.
"This one is different," McLaughlin said. "It's big time. It's not just claymores."
Since July 30, McLaughlin has been joined at Grace by a team of four other VeAhavta volunteers: Dr. Cheryl Huckins and teacher Erin Whaley from Michigan; and Tom McLaughlin and Greg Hill from California. Whaley -- making her third trip to Grace Care Center since August 2005 -- joined the others in trying to keep the orphan children occupied while restricted to the campus.
For the time being, at Grace, Whaley said they don't feel that they are in immediate danger. "Everyone still feels protected, and safe."
After two days of near constant aerial activity overhead, ground-based attacks continued. On Thursday, Aug. 3, an artillery shell struck a school compound in Mutur, killing more than a dozen civilians -- including a 10-year-old boy -- who were among an estimated 600 who had sought refuge there. The government said it is prepared to discuss a truce with the Tigers -- who had not responded by Friday -- and that its military operations would stop if the water supply were reopened.
On the whole, Trincomalee itself was spared the direct hits taken in Mutur and, north of the orphanage, near Nilaveli Beach. McLaughlin said that, as with other periods in recent months when the troubled nation appeared ready to return to what the wire services refer to as, "All-out war," there are mixed opinions as to what the immediate future holds.
"They claim it's not war," McLaughlin said of statements made by government officials. "Other people think the war is back on."

(Our thanks to Jim "Grasshopper" Mitchell for this report.)

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