Background
Following a major defeat in late 1995 when the LTTE lost control of the Jaffna peninsula to the Sri Lankan Army in Operation Riviresa, the LTTE moved to the jungles of the Wanni region. Afterwards the Sri Lankan government and press repeatedly claimed that two-thirds of the LTTE's fighting strength had been destroyed. To counter this - and to increase its image internationally - the LTTE planned and trained a group of 4,000 cadres for an attack on the SLA base at Mullaitivu. LTTE founder and leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was personally involved in the planning and coordination of this operation, codenamed 'Unceasing Waves'.
The Sri Lankan army base at Mullaitivu covered a vast area and was bordered by the sea on one side. The camp occupied an area 2900m long by 1500 wide with a perimeter of 8500m. It had initially been set up as a smaller camp in the early Eighties. Over subsequent years, the camp was expanded to cover most of the small town of Mullaitivu, which was the administrative centre of the Mullaitivu district. The isolated base was the 215 Brigade Headquarters which had no road links to any other garrisons situated in the region. Based there were 6th Vijayabahu Infantry Regiment and the 9th battalion of the Sinha Regiment. On the day of the attack the two most senior officers, the officiating brigade commander, Colonel (later Major General) Lawrence Fernando and his deputy, Lt. Colonel Gunaratne, were away in Colombo on duty leave.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Mullaitivu (1996)
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