Caught in the Crossfire

An increasingly bloody civil war in Sri Lanka is trapping more and more citizens in the line of fire.

When I was there a couple of weeks ago, thousands of people on the east coast were on the move, trying to escape shelling and increased violence. People are displacing to camps, like the one in this picture, with no idea of when or if they will be able to return to their homes. Many of these camps lack sufficient shelter, water, food, sanitation, and health care.

People all along the east coast told me they were anxious about their security -- especially in a place where armed groups consider the language one speaks as an indication of the "side" one is on. And with an increasingly fractured resistance, it becomes harder and harder for citizens to know who's who and how to remain as safe as possible. Too often, the only option is to flee.

One tragedy of a counter-insurgency war is that "draining the pond" means relocating the population or, worse yet, making no distinction between unarmed civilians and combatants.

Sri Lanka's civil war is boiling again, and it's the people who feel the most heat. The Guardian's article goes in more depth, and is worth reading. Check out the photo gallery as well. And stay in touch with UUSC to learn more about our response to the multilayered humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka.