By IANS,
Colombo: The following is the chronology of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which Sunday announced an end to its armed struggle for an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka.
1972: Velupillai Prabhakaran forms Tamil New Tigers (TNT)
1976: Prabhakaran sets up LTTE
1978: Issues its first press statement
1983: Kills 13 soldiers in Jaffna; anti-Tamil violence leads to Tamil insurgency
1986: Wipes out biggest rival Tamil militant group
1987: Takes on Indian Army deployed in Sri Lanka’s northeast. The troops pull out in 1990 after suffering nearly 1,200 dead
1989-90: Holds talks with President Ranasinghe Premadasa
1990: Takes control of Jaffna peninsula, runs de facto state. Massacres 600 policemen who surrendered
1991: Blows up Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratne
1991: LTTE suicide bomber kills Rajiv Gandhi, former Indian prime minister
1992: India outlaws LTTE
1993: Assassinates President Premadasa at May Day rally
1994-95: Agrees to talk to President Chandrika Kumaratunga
1995: Loses Jaffna in December
1996: Overruns army complex in Mullaitivu, slaughters some 1,200 soldiers and policemen in 72 hours.
1998-99: Seizes vast areas in Sri Lanka’s north and east
2001: Attacks Sri Lanka’s only international airport, nearby air base
2002: LTTE, Colombo sign Norway-brokered ceasefire agreement, hold peace talks
2003: Walks out of peace process
2004: LTTE splits, eastern regional commander Karuna walks away with thousands of cadres
2005: LTTE sniper kills Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar
2006: Attempts to assassinate Army Chief Sarath Fonseka and Defence Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa
2007: Launches air strike near Colombo; loses control of Sri Lanka’s east
2008: Sri Lanka pulls out of 2002 truce pact; vows to destroy LTTE
2009: Loses vast areas in north including Kilinochchi, hub of de facto state
May 17, 2009: LTTE decides to “silence” guns, says armed struggle has come to “bitter end”