Elephant Pass
Encyclopedia
Elephant Pass, Northern Province
, Sri Lanka
is an important military base
and formerly the island's largest salt field, located in the gateway of Jaffna Peninsula
. It has thus regularly been the site of battles during the civil war.
connecting the peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland, as well as to territory in the Southern Jaffna peninsula. Elephant Pass connects the militarily significant town of Chavakacheri
in the Jaffna
peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland.
built a fort, which was later rebuilt and garrisoned by the Dutch
in 1776 and later by the British
. A modern military base
was built there in 1952 by the Sri Lankan Army
(SLA). At one time, the base and its outlying camps expanded to cover an area 23 kilometres (14.3 mi) long and 8 kilometres (5 mi) wide.
The base was under SLA control until 2000, despite repeated attempts to capture it by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers). In the First Battle of Elephant Pass
in 1991, the LTTE suffered heavy losses while trying to capture the pass. The base was used as a springboard for a number of SLA offensives during the 1990s, including Operation Yal Devi (named after the Colombo-Jaffna train) in September 1993 and Operation Sath Jaya (Truth’s Victory) in July 1996.
However in a major military defeat, the Sri Lankan Army lost control of the pass to the LTTE on April 22, 2000 in the Second Battle of Elephant Pass
. The pass was finally captured by Sri Lankan force in Third Battle of Elephant Pass
, as part of campaign that led to destruction of Tamil Tigers.
Northern Province, Sri Lanka
The Northern Province is one of the 9 provinces of Sri Lanka. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
is an important military base
Military base
A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. In general, a military base provides accommodations for one or more units, but it may also be used as a...
and formerly the island's largest salt field, located in the gateway of Jaffna Peninsula
Jaffna Peninsula
The Jaffna Peninsula is an area in Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is home to the capital city of the province, Jaffna and comprises much of the former land mass of the ancient Tamil kingdoms of the Nagas and the medieval Jaffna kingdom. The peninsula is mostly surrounded by water, connected to...
. It has thus regularly been the site of battles during the civil war.
Strategic importance
Elephant Pass controls access to the Jaffna Peninsula, therefore it is referred to as the Gateway to Jaffna. It is very crucial as it is on the isthmusIsthmus
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...
connecting the peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland, as well as to territory in the Southern Jaffna peninsula. Elephant Pass connects the militarily significant town of Chavakacheri
Chavakacheri
Chavakacheri is a town in the Jaffna peninsula of Sri Lanka which has been badly devastated in the Sri Lankan civil war. Today, the people of Chavakacheri have rebuilt the town, but the population remains drastically lower than the pre-war years....
in the Jaffna
Jaffna
Jaffna is the capital city of the Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna district located on a peninsula of the same name. Jaffna is approximately six miles away from Kandarodai which served as a famous emporium in the Jaffna peninsula from classical...
peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland.
History
Elephant Pass has been a strategic military base since 1760, when the PortuguesePortuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
built a fort, which was later rebuilt and garrisoned by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in 1776 and later by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. A modern military base
Military base
A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. In general, a military base provides accommodations for one or more units, but it may also be used as a...
was built there in 1952 by the Sri Lankan Army
Sri Lankan Army
The Sri Lanka Army is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is responsible for land-based military and humanitarian operations. Established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, it was renamed when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972...
(SLA). At one time, the base and its outlying camps expanded to cover an area 23 kilometres (14.3 mi) long and 8 kilometres (5 mi) wide.
Role during the Sri Lankan Civil War
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a separatist militant organization formerly based in northern Sri Lanka. Founded in May 1976 by Vellupillai Prabhakaran, it waged a violent secessionist and nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil...
(LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers). In the First Battle of Elephant Pass
First Battle of Elephant Pass
The First Battle of Elephant Pass was a battle fought in July 1991 for the control of the Sri Lankan military base of Elephant Pass, which was of strategic importance as it linked the northern mainland known as Wanni with the Jaffna Peninsula.-The battle:...
in 1991, the LTTE suffered heavy losses while trying to capture the pass. The base was used as a springboard for a number of SLA offensives during the 1990s, including Operation Yal Devi (named after the Colombo-Jaffna train) in September 1993 and Operation Sath Jaya (Truth’s Victory) in July 1996.
However in a major military defeat, the Sri Lankan Army lost control of the pass to the LTTE on April 22, 2000 in the Second Battle of Elephant Pass
Second Battle of Elephant Pass
The Second Battle of Elephant Pass , was a battle fought in April 2000 for the control of the Sri Lankan military base in Elephant Pass, Jaffna....
. The pass was finally captured by Sri Lankan force in Third Battle of Elephant Pass
Third Battle of Elephant Pass
In the Third battle of Elephant Pass, Elephant Pass was recaptured from the Tamil Tigers by the security forces of the Sri Lankan Army.Mahinda Rajapaksa, the president of Sri Lanka declared that Elephant Pass was captured by the army on January 9, 2009....
, as part of campaign that led to destruction of Tamil Tigers.
See also
- Place names in Sri Lanka
- Forts of Sri LankaForts of Sri LankaForts and fortifications in Sri Lanka date back thousands of years with many being built by Sri Lankan Kings, these include several walled cities. With the out set of colonial rule in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka was occupied by several major colonial empires that from time-to-time became the...
- The Road from Elephant PassThe Road from Elephant PassThe Road from Elephant Pass is a 2008 action thriller film produced, screen played and directed by Chandran Rutnam based on the novel The Road from Elephants Pass by Nihal De Silva.-Plot:...
(Movie)