War memorial events banned in North

Sunday, May 11, 2014

While the Government finalises plans to celebrate Victory Day in Matara next Sunday, Police and the military have warned that no public gatherings to remember persons killed in the final stages of the conflict will be allowed in the Northern Province. Special security arrangements would be put in place to monitor whether anyone is organising public events to remember the dead, but there would be no restrictions on family members to remember the dead within their house premises, Military spokesman Ruwan Wanigasuriya said.

He said that even two families would not be allowed to get together to have remembrances as these could turn into a large group and make it a commemoration.Meanwhile, Jaffna’s Senior Police Superintendent W.P. Wimalasena said police teams had been deployed in Jaffna to be alert to any move to hold public events to remember people killed in the final stages of the conflict.

“Any persons trying to hoist black flags, distribute leaflets or put up posters will be considered as supporting of terrorism and such persons will be taken into custody under the Prevention of Terrorism Act,” he warned. He said steps were being taken to prevent such remembrance events. The SSP said the authorities had closed the Jaffna University to prevent any remembrance events there.

The fifth anniversary of the defeat of the LTTE or Victory Day will be celebrated by the Government next Sunday in Matara with military parades and other events.

Wigneswaran rejects common candidacy 

 



May 11, 2014
Claims he is not power hungry to accept such a nomination
By Ananth Palakidnar
 

Chief Minister of the Northern Province, C.V. Wigneswaran, has declined suggestions that he become a common presidential candidate, claiming he is not power hungry.

Sources close to Wigneswaran commenting on recent suggestions, which surfaced in political circles, to make him a common presidential candidate, said the Chief Minister had claimed he did not know whether to laugh or to cry, when he heard the suggestion.

He had said, "In fact, I didn't show any interest in entering politics. However, on the insistence of several people, I thought of engaging in politics to serve the Tamil people who wanted a good leadership to guide them in the post-war situation in the North. The people in the North have elected me as their Chief Minister with an overwhelming support. I have been the Northern Chief Minister for the past seven months." 

"But, unfortunately, I am unable to serve my people in a constructive manner because powers have not been devolved to the Northern Provincial Council in a proper way.

"Currently, I'm struggling to get powers devolved to the Northern Province. I'm unable to think about becoming the common candidate at the next presidential election.

"I didn't enter politics with any power hunger. My aim is to serve the people who had elected me as the Northern Chief Minister. Therefore, making any suggestion to make me a presidential candidate is meaningless and I am not for it," Wigneswaran had said.

Packer is coming; but has paid only 20 per cent for the land

(Lanka-e-News-11.May.2014, 3.00PM) Australian casino mogul James Packer’s resort in Colombo Fort is yet to receive Urban Development Authority (UDA) approval as the investors have paid just 20 per cent of the total value of the property on which it is to be built. The land, which is located in the corner of D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha and Sir Chittampalam A Gardiner Mawatha, is valued at Rs. 2.4 billion, UDA Chairman Nimal Perera said. Ten per cent of this was first paid seven years ago, in 2007, while another ten per cent was deposited with the UDA subsequently.

“The land has been reserved through the payment of these advances but the full payment is yet to come,” Mr. Perera said. “They have submitted their plans for the mixed development project but they have to pay in full and follow procedures.” “We will approve the plans once the payment is made and if they are in keeping with UDA regulations,” he added. The land had originally been reserved for a car park by Rank Holdings (Pvt) Ltd. Chairman Ravi Wijeratne, Mr. Packer’s local partner. But it is now proposed to build a 400-room resort on it.

The UDA chairman confirmed that the partners had changed the design of their hotel from a single block to two towers. This was in keeping with the recommendations of a World Bank consultant who proposed a modification in architecture for aesthetic purposes. The UDA has also received for approval the plans for a resort being built by Dammika Perera, Mr Wijeratne’s arch business rival. These are also yet to be passed. The property on which the Queensbury Hotel will be built belongs to the Sri Lanka Ports Authority.

The third resort approved recently under the Strategic Development Projects Act — John Keells Water Properties (Pvt) Ltd — is already at construction stage. That hotel is being built on the company’s own property. Meanwhile, the Government has returned to its earlier position that the new hotels could have casinos in them. Cabinet Spokesman Keheliya Rambuwella said existing casino operators could enter into partnerships to set up a business.

“The papers reported that the President has said there will be no casinos (in the resorts),” he told the Sunday Times. “What he said was that no new casino licences will be issued.” Minister Rambukwella said two operators – Mr. Wijeratne and Mr. Perera — are already operating five casinos in Sri Lanka on the payment of an annual tax which started with Rs. 10 million but today stands at Rs. 100 million. “Circumstances have proved beyond the iota of a doubt that it (tax payment) was meant to serve as a licence,” he maintained.

When it was pointed out that no licensing system existed at present, Minister Rambukwella replied that if there had been “a procedural or technical error, if at all, it could be rectified”. “But we will not ask them to close down,” he stressed. “Just because we had ‘mathata thitha’ we didn’t close down all the bars.”

Another foolish act of govt.

Sunday, 11 May 2014

The government ally Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) has emphasised that the decision to bring in South Africa as a mediator for talks with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is another foolish act of the government.

The deputy president of South Africa ,Cyril Ramaphosa, is to arrive in Sri Lanka in June to play the role of a third party in the particular talks

JHU National Organizer and Western provincial councillor, Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe, who stated that Mr.Ramaphosa is known for his bias towards the LTTE and involving such an individual in the talks will be asking for trouble, stressed that his party completely opposes the particular decision of the government.

The government decision to adopt models of the South African Truth Commission cannot be approved under any circumstance and it is inappropriate for the reconciliation process in Sri Lanka, he said.

He further stated that it is distressing how the government is acting for the sake of it without any plans.

President plays hell before judges’ swearing-in!

 Sunday, 11 May 2014

Moments before the swearing-in of the new judges of the Supreme Court on April 07 at Temple Trees, president Mahinda Rajapaksa dashed flower pots on the ground, cried out in filth that was heard as far as Galle Road, and practically played hell.

After signing several documents at his office table, he had hurried to the hall where the swearing-in was to take place, but knocked himself against a ceramic flower pot and fell into the ground. Seeing that it had not been placed properly, the president had lifted the flower pot and dashed it to the ground. He further lost his temper after the soil and water in the pot had stained his clothes, and the filth he had uttered had echoed and re-echoed in the Temple Trees.

No one had gone near him. Maddened more by that, he had dashed the other flower pots too, to the ground. After saying a few more choice words, he had left for the upstairs.

Returning to his senses, the president had changed his clothes, gone to the swearing-in hall one hour late and obtained oaths from the judges.

Before he left for Bahrain, the president had ordered an additional secretary at the Presidential Secretariat, Jayasekara, to draft a letter and bring it to him by 9.00 am. In the morning, the president had waited downstairs, without leaving for the airport although it was past 9.00 am, for the man to come. He had arrived around 9.20 am, as he had been held up by traffic congestion.

As soon as he saw him, the president had grabbed him by the collar, pushed him against a wall, and saying, “You, s….b, is this how you work?” and slammed his head against the wall. Others did not go near, as they did not want to be beaten up by the president.

The person who related this incident to us has been employed at Temple Trees under several prime ministers and presidents, before the incumbent head of state. He said, “I have never seen such a bull-headed president in all my life. Madam Chandrika too, behaved like this during her last days. Only the bitch she reared had gone near her. But, she never beat up people. She only abused people in filth, in English. Everyone is like that when their end nears.”

Conjurers And Dupes

| by Tisaranee Gunasekara

“We’ve got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff…..”

Lee Iaccoca (Where Have All the Leaders Gone?)

( May 11, 2014, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The military court of inquiry into the Weliweriya shooting presented its report to the Army Commander on August 21st 2013. “The Court has prepared a comprehensive report….” the army announced.

Conjurers and Dupes by Thavam Ratna

The Apparent Opposition And The Real Opposition

By Malinda Seneviratne -May 11, 2014 |

Malinda Seneviratne

President Mahinda Rajapaksa knows better than most how to make the best out of a bad situation.  He showed once again what an astute politician he is on May Day when he turned things around after key members of the ruling coalition declined to support what has been dubbed the ‘Casino Bill’.  He said that there is room in the Government for dissent.  More importantly he said that things had come to a point where the only discernible opposition was already within the United People’s Freedom Alliance.

Now, given his readiness to embrace anyone and everyone, the UPFA certainly looks like a massive bedroom housing strange bedfellows. One would expect this to be a recipe for friction, defection and eventual collapse.  After being in power for more than a decade it is an indictment on the sad state of the opposition that regime-hating commentators have been reduced to clinging to the casino-opposition as evidence of fissure leading to inevitable regime-collapse.

So far, the UPFA has survived ‘regime-fatigue’, international pressure and regular own-goals at all levels.  IfRanil Wickremesinghe’s biggest weakness, the fact that he has no close friends, is also his biggest strength; Mahinda’s biggest strength, the fact that he has many friends, is also his biggest weakness.  In the play of strengths and weaknesses, so far, Mahinda Rajapaksa has prevailed.  The negatives have not translated to a massive swing to the opposition.  It seems, instead, that contrary to the usual trend of regime-displeasure translating into default-support for the opposition, the lack of a credible opposition reduces the people to back the regime according to a ‘known-devil-is-better’ logic.  As a three-wheel driver recently summed up, ‘api bena bena aanduwatama chande denava’ (we continue to vote for the government even as we curse it).

This state of affairs, this strange benefitting from the non existence of a default option, is clearly not sustainable.  Perhaps the ‘internal opposition’ is a relatively safe safeguard against collapse.  But is that the only ‘opposition’ to Mahinda Rajapaksa?                                                                      Read More

Weerawansa’s open revolt rattles Govt. as it prepares for elections

• Sunday, May 11, 2014

Special presidential unit investigates dealings by rebel minister's NHDA NFF to present 12-point demand, including firm 'no to casinos'; tie-up with JHU and MEP UNHRC gets funding for probe of alleged war crimes; Pillay to name commission and terms soon

Like a roulette wheel, partners in the UPFA Government have gone into a spin over the controversial casino issue. The latest is the National Freedom Front (NFF) led by Minister Wimal Weerawansa, often dubbed as the mouthpiece of President Mahinda Rajapaksa on controversial issues. His colleagues even identify him as the point man to raise planted questions at weekly ministerial meetings to pave the way for Rajapaksa’s critical intervention. On other occasions he is a one-man ‘fact finder’ on the allegiances of his colleagues or how embarrassing facts leak to the media for investigative reports.

Weerawansa’s Open Revolt Rattles Govt. as It Prepares for Elections by Thavam Ratna

Sri Lanka’s growth paradox: When poverty yields, income gap holds stubbornly

Obsessive pursuit of economic growth-Sunday 11th May 2014
Economic growth is voted almost unanimously by everyone as ‘good’ for society because it enhances the ‘material goods’ available for people to lead a better living. It increases wealth of people and prosperity in society. High economic growth rates are preferred to low economic growth rates because they bring in higher levels of wealth and prosperity. Hence, all societies today – rich, middle and poor – pursue economic growth as the single-most goal of society to offer a better deal for their members.

Sri Lanka’s Growth Paradox When Poverty Yields, Income Gap Holds Stubbornly by Thavam Ratna

President shows gratitude to Thilanga for expelling ‘Lakbima’ editor

 Sunday, 11 May 2014 

The president has called Thilanga Sumathipala and commended him for having sacked, at his request, Saman Wagarachchi, the editor of ‘Lakbima’ who had been quite a headache to the government and its allied Premadasa faction of the UNP. In a move of gratitude, the president has promised Thilanga the position of Sri Lanka Cricket presidency.

“Jayantha Dharmadasa is a dull man. He plays funny games. He gives Board’s news to the media. Especially to websites. The Board takes a decision and even before the secretary takes down the minutes, it is posted on websites. It is Jayantha who is behind all conspiracies against Nishantha. He does not listen although I ask him not to make unnecessary problems. I am giving you the presidency upon one promise. I know you and he are at odds. Whoever says anything I will not remove Nishantha. Think and tell me if you can work with him,” the president has told Thilanga.

In answer, Thilanga has said, “I did not know that you like Nishantha so much, sir. During Chandrika’s time, when he was at Rupavahini, we requested some master tapes from him to do a documentary on you, sir. His quick response was “Do you make documentaries about thieves?” He said the tapes can be given for a fee.”

Without taking Thilanga’s response seriously, the president has said, “I mostly get closer to those who had attacked me in the past. Those who attacked me and planned to kill me in the past serve me better.”

If Thilanga will agree, at the president’s request and taking him as an example, to work together with Nishantha at SLC, he will get the presidency of the cricket governing body.

Seven policemen arrested over the death of a suspect in custody 

Related posts;
 May 11, 2014
Seven police officers attached to the Kandaketiya Police Station have been suspended after an 18 year old youth died while being held in custody at Badulla prison.

The Officers have been suspended until the investigations about the death of the Youth are completed. The youth was arrested on 07 May for being involved in illegal treasure hunting in the Bogahalanda reserve area.

The post mortem states that the death was caused due to an assault. The 7 policemen have been arrested and they are to be produced before the court.

Election front-runner BJP could curb beef exports
A butcher cuts up portions of beef for sale in an abattoir at a wholesale market in Mumbai May 11, 2014.

BY MAYANK BHARDWAJ AND MEENAKSHI SHARMA-Sun May 11, 2014 

(Reuters) - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) says it plans to clamp down on beef exports if it takes power after general elections that end on Monday, threatening supplies from one of the world's biggest shippers of the meat.

Surprisingly in a country where so many view cows as sacred, India has been poised to become the No.1 beef exporting nation, supplying markets such as Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Egypt.

Although most of that is from buffalo, which are not worshipped by Hindus, the BJP wants to curb exports that jar with the country's vegetarian tradition and to bolster the availability of animals reared to work on farms and for their milk.

A drop in Indian exports could buoy global cattle prices that have come off record peaks this year after the U.S. herd was pegged at its lowest in over six decades.

"If elected, we will crack down on beef exports and we will also review the subsidy the government gives for beef or buffalo meat exports," Satpal Malik, the BJP vice-president who drafted the farm policy section of its election manifesto, told Reuters.

To help beef producers and exporters set up abattoirs, the central government pays 50-75 percent of the cost of construction.

The BJP manifesto defines the "cow and its progeny" as integral to India's cultural heritage - appealing to the party's core constituency of Hindus who abhor eating beef.

The Hindu nationalist party has also said it would outlaw cow slaughter in the only two states where it is currently permitted, and wants to stamp out illegal abattoirs where meat from cows enters the supply chain.

Voting in the country's mammoth five-week general election has nearly finished, with polls showing the BJP taking the most seats and the ruling Congress Party likely to be ousted after a decade in power. Results are due May 16.

SECTARIAN DIVISIONS

The possibility of a government drive to reduce exports has spooked beef suppliers at India's largest abattoir, which slaughters 300-500 cattle a day in Deonar on the outskirts of Mumbai.

"We have voted for Congress but if the BJP comes to power, we will have to be cautious. They are against our trade and they may come with strict rules," said supplier Mohammad Shareef Qureshi, sitting on an iron cot in a Deonar tea stall.

Beef production is dominated by Muslims, a minority in the country, and can stir sectarian divisions.

Clashes and altercations between some voluntary groups affiliated with the BJP and people involved in beef production and exports are common.

"The situation would get worse for us under a BJP government," said one truck driver who transports livestock. Giving his first name as Guddu, he complained of harassment by some Hindu organisations while on the road.

"We do oppose cow slaughter and we do act against it ... Why should it be allowed when cow is sacred to millions of Hindus?" said Prakash Sharma, spokesman for one leading Hindu organisation.

The next government must ban beef exports, added Sharma, whose group, the Vishva Hindu Parishad, or World Hindu Council, is part of an umbrella group of Hindu nationalist organisations that includes the BJP.

Hindu-Muslim relations have been a key election issue, with critics accusing BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi of not doing enough to protect Muslims in a spasm of religious violence in the western state of Gujarat in 2002 that left at least 1,000 dead.

Modi, chief minister of Gujarat, has denied any wrongdoing and a Supreme Court inquiry found no case to answer.

Some in the industry said that a BJP victory would only have a limited impact on exports, however. Government figures show these increased to $3.2 billion in 2012/13 from $1.9 billion in 2010/11, boosted by robust demand for cheap, lean Indian halal meat.

India trails only Brazil in beef exports, with a 20 percent market share, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture figures.

"Any major restrictions on exports are unlikely because meat exports are a big source of earning for the government," said Salim Qureshi, a top supplier of buffalo in Aligarh.

(Editing by Douglas Busvine and Joseph Radford)

The War on the Elderly and Disabled - 18 USCA 4 Report

Ken Ditkowsky for Salem-News.com-May-10-2014

If you need more convincing as to our own holocaust check out the Alice Gore case. After she was railroaded into one of the nursing home 'death camps' the miscreants mined her teeth for their gold filings! Across America this outrage continues!

progressive-charlestown.com

(CHICAGO) - The evening news reports the kidnapping of several hundred children by terrorists, and the anguished statements of our political leaders; however, these same pols are silent as hundreds of elderly and disabled people are kidnapped and herded into abusive guardianships to be ravaged, stripped of their liberty, stripped of their money, and denied all rights of American citizenship.

The hypocrisy is amazing!

Our congress has enacted laws to protect the elderly and the disabled; however, except on rare occasions they (the laws) are ignored. Here in Illinois it is not uncommon for elderly people to find themselves under the dominion and control of ultra vires judicial domination that is akin to the gulag or the holocaust. I attached a copy of a brief that Ms. Denison and I filed in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that details how a senior citizen was railroaded into a guardianship, and when her friends and family tried to obtain JUSTICE for her they were thwarted and Ms. Denison and I have had to deal with the problem of being unwelcome whistle blowers who will not adhere to the code of silence.

The brief has been filed and is of record. Therefore, the 4th estate can reprint any of the statements made therein without fear of defamation. The miscreants including but not limited to the Administrator of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission, Guardian ad Litem Adam Stern, Guardian ad Litem Cynthia Farenga et al cannot censor the content and if you chose to be upset by the kidnapping of hundred of elderly people ****. (Even social media was intimidate by our miscreants - video's of Mary were posted demonstrating that she was very competent and demanding legal representation - legal representation was denied her - Mr. Stern told the Court she did not want to represented. He did this in the fact of handwritten notes smuggled out by Mary! (See Appendix)

The brief deals with a Taliban type assault on the First Amendment and demonstrates how vulnerable American liberties have become. I invite you to do an INDEPENDENT, HONEST, COMPLETE AND COMPREHENSIVE INVESTIGATION. I respectfully you sojourn to the Daley Center, go to the clerk's office on the 12th floor and access the Mary Sykes file 09 P 4585. It is an interesting read, if you also access the guardianship statute 755 ILCS 5/11a - 1 et seq.

The first step in any litigation is to check and see if jurisdiction has been obtained. 755 ILCS 5/11a - 10 deals with the method of obtaining jurisdiction. Examine the summons. The form of the summons is not compliant. Look to see if Mary was served with any process. There is no sheriff's return! Worse yet, the address on the summons is a Chicago address - Mary had been forcibly moved to Naperville! Thus, from the file it is apparent that Mary was not before the Court.

To make certain that a senior citizen is not railroaded, the statute requires that close relatives be notified 14 days prior to a hearing on competency. The Supreme Court of Illinois has said that such is jurisdictional. The file does not indicate that there was any notification of Mary's younger daughter or her two sisters. In point of fact none of these three individuals was notified and in fact in an effort to keep the proceedings secret Mary's two sisters were not disclosed on the Petition to appoint a guardian for her so as to strip her of her citizenship rights.

Mr. Schmiedel (the guardian's attorney) is not ashamed of the fact that there was no incompetency hearing - neither are the guardians. To Hell with the requirement that before a senior can be kidnapped and rendered a non-entity he/she has to be proven incompetent by clear and convincing evidence! All that was necessary was an agreement by the people who count - i.e. the elder cleansers.

The long and short is that State and Federal law are ignored as hundreds of senior citizens are taken prisoner and stripped of their liberty, property, and human rights the Administration on the Federal and State level are silent. There are no teams of law enforcement agents sent out to disarm the kidnappers her in Illinois. No hue and cry has been raised by the horror that Mary Sykes, Yolanda Bakken (sister) and Gloria Sykes (daughter) have been subjected! Senator Durbin responded by sending us a copy of a speech that he made on Social Security. The legal profession responded by disciplinary proceedings against Ms. Denison and myself for requesting an investigation.

If you need more convincing as to our own holocaust check out the Alice Gore case. After she was railroaded into one of the nursing home 'death camps' the miscreants mined her teeth for their gold filings!

Across America this outrage continues!

Why are we so concerned when humans are so horrible in a foreign land and we ignore virtually the same atrocities right here in America!

N.B. In my opinion based upon half a century as a lawyer, the Elder Justice Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, and our Federal Criminal Code all make the actions of the two guardian ad litem in the Sykes case and their defenders felonies! 18 USCA 371 draws in Mr. Jerome Larkin of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission into the circle. I've reported his aiding and abetting this criminal activity to the IARDC. I got back a letter informing me that he (Larkin) refinanced his home in Wilmette, Illinois. The IARDC pursuant to my Himmel requirement has been copied on this e-mail.

 

Ken Ditkowsky

http://www.ditkowskylawoffice.com/

Bus plunges down gorge in northern India, killing at least 17 people

Passengers were travelling in darkness when vehicle fell off road near Himalayas in Uttarakhand and broke into pieces

The bus was travelling from Rishikesh and was a quarter of a mile from Ghat, its destination, in northern India. Photograph: Tai Power Seeff/Getty Images

Martin Williams and agencies

Saturday 10 May 2014 

Seventeen people have died after a bus plunged off a mountain road in the Himalayan foothills in northern India.

Passengers were travelling in darkness when the bus fell 300 metres and smashed into pieces at the bottom of a gorge in Chamoli district, in the state of Uttarakhand.

Disaster management officials said 15 people died instantly, two others died later, and five were injured. There was no one else on board.

The bus was travelling from Rishikesh and was a quarter of a mile from Ghat, its destination, when it crashed before dawn on Saturday.

The five survivors were being treated at a local hospital.

Suicide bomber kills 11 people in latest Yemen violence

BY MOHAMMED MUKHASHAF AND MOHAMED GHOBARI-Sun May 11, 2014

(Reuters) - A suicide car bomber killed 10 Yemeni soldiers and one civilian and wounded many others on Sunday after targeting a military police building in the southern coastal city of Mukallah, state news agency Saba said.

The blast appeared to be a revenge attack by al Qaeda over the Yemeni army's campaign to crush Islamist insurgents in two large southern provinces.

This has ousted many militants from towns they first seized during mass unrest in 2011 that jeopardised national security and posed a serious threat to major oil producer Saudi Arabia next door.

Rescuers picked through the rubble of the two-storey building to search for survivors from the blast, which hit the complex as the soldiers were having lunch, a local security official told Reuters. "We cannot tell the wounded from the dead," the official said. Saba cited a security source as saying 15 soldiers were wounded in the attack.

Residents said ambulances had been evacuating the wounded from the scene of the blast which had sent shrapnel flying into nearby residential buildings.

"It was a strong explosion and it shook Mukallah," resident Salah al-Hamawi told Reuters by telephone.

In a separate assault in the Yemeni capital on Sunday, three gunmen were killed after they tried to attack a security checkpoint, the Interior Ministry said, the second such incident close to Sanaa's presidential palace in as many days.

The checkpoint attack also appeared to be retaliation for the army offensive, which state news agency Saba said had killed or wounded hundreds of al Qaeda members.

PURSUIT

Western powers are concerned al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) could use Yemen as a springboard for future international attacks.

Keen to stem a stubborn Islamist insurgency that has targeted security forces, military facilities and foreigners, Yemen's army went after the militants last month in the south.

Citing a military source, Saba said the military had recently killed dozens of al Qaeda leaders, most of them foreigners. The army had captured weapons, equipment and bomb-making workshops, it said.

The army, which conducted a similar, ultimately ineffective campaign against al Qaeda in 2012, has pledged to continue to pursue militants who had retreated from towns in Shabwa and Abyan provinces into the rugged desert hinterland.

The Interior Ministry said on its website it had tightened security at several Yemeni sea ports after receiving information that militants from Somalia may cross to Yemen to join forces with al Qaeda-linked fighters to counter the army offensive.

Sunday's attack in the capital, about 500 metres from the presidential palace, came two days after a gunfight in the same part of Sanaa, and what appeared to be an assassination attempt on the defence minister in Shabwa province.

"Three terrorists were killed at dawn today in a new attack that targeted a security checkpoint," the Interior Ministry said in a statement. It said a fourth gunman was wounded and a civilian bystander was also killed.

Residents heard gunshots in the area early on Sunday and said the military had deployed extra soldiers to secure surrounding roads since the attack.

"We heard heavy gunfire near the central intelligence building which is on the road leading to the presidential palace," one resident said.

"It lasted for several minutes then stopped and two hours later we heard heavy firing when we wanted to go to work."

YEMEN ATTACKS KILL MORE THAN A DOZEN

An explosion at a military base killed at least 11 in al-Mukalla, with four more deaths after an attack in capital

May 11, 2014

A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden car into a military police base in al-Mukalla, in southeast Yemen, killing at least 11 people.

Witnesses in the provincial capital of Hadramawt reported an ambulance ferrying casualties to a city hospital on Sunday.

The blast came as government forces hunted Al-Qaeda fighters in the south.

In an earlier attack on Sunday, three fighters were killed after they tried to attack a security checkpoint in the Yemeni capital, the interior ministry said the shootings were the second such incident close to the presidential palace in Sanaa in as many days. 

A civilian was also killed during the gunfight which erupted at dawn.

The attack in Sanaa appeared to be retaliation for the army offensive against Al-Qaeda that has ousted many fighters from bastions in south Yemen, which they first seized during mass unrest in 2011.

Sanaa has been on alert for days, and tensions rose after the army said troops had entered Azzan, a rebel stronghold in southern Shabwa province, prompting the United States to close its embassy on Thursday.

Five guards were killed on Friday in clashes that broke out after gunmen attacked the checkpoint outside the palace in Sanaa which the president, who was not there at the time, only uses for meetings.

Friday's attack on the palace came hours after the defense minister, who has vowed to crush fighters active in Yemen, survived an ambush by suspected Al-Qaeda fighters in the south.

Yemen's army says its offensive against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) strongholds in the contiguous provinces of Shabwa, Abyan and Baida has inflicted heavy losses on the fighters.

AQAP is considered by Washington as the most dangerous affiliate of Al-Qaeda and has been linked to failed plots in the U.S.

Western powers are concerned that AQAP could use Yemen as a springboard for future international attacks.

Al Jazeera and wire services