In 106 strikes in 2007, there were only 3 in which civilian deaths were alleged. There were only four other strikes with regard to which injuries to civilians were alleged. This record is perhaps unrivalled by any other air force engaged in fighting terrorism, and is certainly a very far cry from the relentless assaults on civilians engaged in during the war against Iraq, by countries from which are heard the loudest attacks against Sri Lanka. In the whole of 2008, when there were 313 strikes, in only 26 were there allegations of civilian deaths. A total of 61 individuals are alleged to have been killed, with just 1or 2 killed in 19 of the strikes. These latter instances were not likely to have involved targets close to civilian habitation, and were doubtless due to civilians being in dangerous places, when they were not directly because of the LTTE practice of making civilians work for them in military installations. With regard to cases of greater numbers I would ask for explanations, and these were unfailing provided by the Air Force, and were usually most convincing. Young officers would arrive in my office carrying maps on which they would point out the targets that had been taken. We would indeed discuss some of these cases at my weekly office meetings, and navy and army personnel would complain that the Air Force refused to take out clearly identified military targets if there were civilian habitations close by. I find it significant that no one in the Western media is at all concerned to study how our Air Force conducted itself. Though it is possible that the plethora of allegations that were flung in 2009, and which I shall consider next, made the international community dubious about us, I believe those who actually monitored the conflict are well aware of this excellent record. I suspect rather that any consideration of this would show up how appalling is the record of more powerful countries, so our circumspection has to be belittled or ignored..
4. Civilian casualties during 2009 I have looked previously at concerns about civilian casualties during the first part of the conflict. Since allegations of civilian casualties increased astronomically during 2009, it will be salutary to address these separately. 11. Concerns were expressed in January 2009 that civilians were falling victim on a large scale to army attacks. Whereas in the last seven months of 2008 only 78 civilian deaths were alleged by Tamilnet, in January 2009 alone there were allegations of 689 civilian deaths. The largest allegation in this regard was on January 26th when it was claimed that more than 300 people died. There was another allegation on the same day of more than 100
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