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A day at the front line in Sri Lanka
Access for foreign journalists to Asia's longest running civil war between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and government troops, is very tightly controlled by the Sri Lankan government. Getting near the front line area known as the 'No Fire Zone' is only possible with an officially sanctioned trip organized by the Ministry of Defence. Last Friday, April 24, I went on one.
The trip started at 3.30am, when I arrived at the military air base in Colombo. We went through 3 security checks, before boarding our plane at 6.30am. We flew north for about 30 minutes to a small airstrip at a place called Mankulam. From here, we boarded two Mi-8 helicopters. To avoid any ground fire, the choppers fly at maximum speed just above the height of the tallest trees, and when I say just, I mean scraping the leaves. This fast and furious ride lasted just 30 minutes to the town of Kilinochchi.
We had a quick briefing, and then we set off in a convoy of armored personnel carriers towards the front. The carrier that I got into was a very old, clunky thing of which there was not much evidence of suspension. The roads in the area had suffered 25 years of a civil war, and were in seriously bad condition. Myself and and a TV cameraman tried our best to grab pictures as we sped along at around 50 miles/h but we were being thrown around so much, even for me to get the camera up to my face and see through it, was near impossible. We held on the best we could, and I managed to get a few 'usable' frames of a scorched and destroyed landscape. Every single dwelling was either destroyed or uninhabitable. It reminded me of East Timor in 1999. Burnt out vehicles lined the road. What was most noticeable was the absence of people. There were simply no civilians anywhere.
After what seemed like hours, but was actually only one, we arrived at the destroyed town of Puttumatalan. Here we got into jeeps. The troops that were escorting us got noticeably nervous. They held their guns at the ready now, looking more alert and more intently into the coconut groves as we passed. We must be close now, I thought.
from Photographers Blog:
Snowed under
So what do you do when the TV and radio news are all telling you not to travel, and then you receive a group SMS from your company saying stay at home?
Well it's the worse snow storm to hit London in 18 years and all you want to do is get out there and shoot it.
Best of Britain – the week in pictures
A weekly selection of some of the best pictures taken by our photographers in Britain, selected by our visuals editors.
Manchester City’s Robinho gestures during a match against Newcastle United in Manchester January 28, 2009. The Premier League star, Britain’s most expensive footballer, denied any wrongdoing or criminality after his arrest over allegations of serious sexual assault. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis 
The week in pictures
A selection of the week’s best images from Britain. Click here if you would like to see it as a slideshow.
U.S. actor Mickey Rourke arrives for the UK premiere of his film “The Wrestler” at Leicester Square in London on January 5, 2009. REUTERS/Luke MacGregor
In Britain – The week in 7 pictures
Saturday: A worker changes a sign in the window of the Woolworths store in Ashby de la Zouch in central England on December 27, 2008. Woolworths collapsed into administration in November and its administrators said earlier in December that all its stores would close by Jan. 5, with the loss of 27,000 jobs, unless a last-minute buyer could be found. REUTERS/Darren Staples
Sunday: A pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a muddy boot during a protest near the Israeli Embassy in London on December 28, 2008, against the Israeli strikes on Gaza. REUTERS/Luke MacGregor
In Britain – 7 days in 7 pictures
Wednesday: A homeless man sits outside the entrance to Green Park Tube Station in central London on Christmas Eve, while a man and a woman kiss goodbye after a shopping trip. There was yet more evidence this week that the world’s economies are limping into the new year, with Britain contracting more sharply than first thought and further signs that the U.S. economy is in a sharp decline. REUTERS/Andrew Parson
Tuesday: A homeless man has his hair cut at the charity Crisis UK temporary day centre for the homeless at a school in London. Crisis UK opens its doors to the homeless over the festive period from 23 until 30 December. A survey for Crisis suggests nearly one in 10 people are struggling to keep up with rent or mortgage payments, and the charity fears there will be a surge in homelessness in 2009. REUTERS/Luke McGregor
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