Pooneryn பூநகரி පූනෙරිය | |
|---|---|
  Pooneryn | |
| Coordinates:9°30′0″N80°12′0″E / 9.50000°N 80.20000°E /9.50000; 80.20000 | |
| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Province | Northern |
| District | Kilinochchi |
| DS Division | Poonakary |
Poonakary orPooneryn (Tamil:பூநகரி,romanized: Pūnakari;Sinhala:පූනෙරිය,romanized: Pūneriya),[1] is a strategically importantvillage situated on theJaffna Lagoon, directly across from theJaffna Peninsula in theNorthern Province ofSri Lanka.[2]
Situated in theVanni region, the town was colonized by thePortuguese in the 15th century and afort was constructed in the town due to its strategic location on the Jaffna Lagoon. It was later taken and expanded by theDutch. According to 1770 records, it was square shaped with twobastions at opposite corners. Theramparts on each of the sides were about 30 metres in length. It was garrisoned until the late 18th century. The British built a rest house there in 1805.
Since 1983, and due to theCivil War, the town was garrisoned by theSri Lankan Army. In 1993, the town was the site of amajor battle during the civil war. During the battle, theLTTE attacked and failed to take the town. They did however managed to capture equipment such as assault rifles, ammunition, machine guns, mortars and even twoT-55 tanks which proved to be vital to their forces. The town was later evacuated by the Sri Lankan Army due totactical reasons in 1996. The LTTE occupied the town and maintained a garrison due to its strategic location. The fort was used during theSecond Battle of Elephant Pass, where the LTTE bombedElephant Pass from Poonakary and bombed soldiers who retreated toJaffna. The town was recaptured by the Sri Lankan Army on November 15, 2008. The LTTE wasbeginning to collapse. The town has since then been garrisoned by the Sri Lankan Army. The fort itself has been abandoned and left to the elements. The fort is accessible to the public.[3][4]
9°30′N80°12′E / 9.500°N 80.200°E /9.500; 80.200
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