Karuna, aka Colonel Amman entered Sri Lanka on Thursday using a temporary passport issued by the High Commission in London.

His "Diplomatic" passport was not visible at Katunayake. Karuna was met in the terminal by several unidentified persons and he was taken through the special lounge normally reserved for VIPs.

His destination was unknown and his entry into Sri Lanka was not covered by the main stream press. For most other passengers, Karuna was incognito and he walked off the plane into the terminal where he was met and escorted away. Security was more obvious even to the casual observer.

Karuna was arrested in London for entering Britain on a diplomatic passport that was later stated by the Ministry of Foreign affairs to be a forgery. The British police attempted to follow several leads pertaining to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity given to them by LTTE sympathisers in UK. But they were not able to pin anything conclusive on Karuna.

Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch in London, said in a press release that a rare opportunity to hold a former Tamil Tiger leader accountable for human rights abuses was missed by the UK Government.

On entering Britain, Karuna made an application for political asylum. This was denied to him even though his wife and children are residents of England. The British Government did not make any statements to the press and it is still not clear if he was deported as an illegal alien or returned to Sri Lanka at his own request.

What Karuna's role will be in the push to eliminate the LTTE is not clear. His information is mostly old stuff and it has been many years since his Eastern brigade broke away from the main stream Jaffna clique. However many feel that Karuna still has a powerful following amongst the LTTE membership who are getting tired of the current leader's modus operandi.

Many, more logical LTTE members feel that a political solution would be the best alternative to being wiped out by the fast approaching Government forces. Some have even said that they would like to emulate the IRA and lay down their arms and become a legal political party. A similar case was seen with the JVP when it abandoned it's policy of violence and joined the main stream as a political party.