Previous military intelligence claims of LTTE having placed a heavy artillery gun inside Madhu no-war zone have been confirmed by civilian eyewitnesses. At least one artillery gun was visible to pilgrims who visited the sacred Madhu shrine during recent days. The gun was placed in close proximity to the shrine. Air strikes and artillery strikes on the known gun position have been withheld in fear of civilian casualties and damages to the sacred shrine.
It is believed that the artillery gun is an 122mm which has a range close to 20km. Initial MI warning of the gun emplacement came as the LTTE shelled the Pompaimadu artillery base several weeks ago. LTTE cadres effectively used this gun in a major offensive that helped them recover recently lost areas in the Thampanai region. Their three pronged assault backed by artillery support was able to breach the army FDL at one location but the army was able to defend the other two fronts.