COLOMBO: Long associated with sectarian violence in the Middle East, the suicide attack has been refined by Sri Lanka’s secularist Tamil Tiger rebels into a sophisticated weapon of war.

Spearheaded by the Black Tigers suicide squad and their naval wing, the Black Sea Tigers, the rebels have for years assassinated political and military figures in their fight against the Sinhalese-dominated state. “There is no doubt about it, they have perfected the art of the suicide bomb,” said one Western diplomat.

With Sri Lanka’s ethnic rivals now back on the battlefield, fears abound that one of the defining symbols of modern conflict — the suicide bomber — will again become commonplace in this compact seaside capital. Analysts generally agree that the Tigers pioneered the use of the concealed suicide bomb vest — a technology now used to deadly effect across the world.

Among their victims were former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, killed in 1991 with a prototype suicide vest, and Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa, hit two years later.

Military personnel, rival Tamil politicians, and ordinary people have all felt the Tigers’ deadly strikes. Security experts say the Tamils have adapted the strategy to battles on land and, most notably, at sea, where suicide “swarm tactics” against the Sri Lankan navy have been highly effective.—Reuters