COLOMBO, Nov 20: Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Monday ordered the reopening of the highway linking the northern Jaffna peninsula with the rest of the country so that essential commodities could be sent to the Tamil populace.

The presidential order coincided with the recurrence of clashes between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan military.

A statement by the president's secretariat said that after representations from several quarters, Mr Rajapakse had directed the authorities concerned to make arrangements for the transportation of essential goods to Jaffna through the A-9 highway as a ‘one-time measure’.

The military-controlled Jaffna peninsula, home to 600,000 Tamils, has been suffering from food shortages since the highway was closed in August after heavy fighting.

"Soon a large convoy of lorries would take essential commodities to Jaffna,” the statement from the president’s office said.