Sri Lanka: a Muslim backlash is coming

The Muslim community is being driven to the brink of retaliation, says A S H SMYTH

Of all the parties to Sri Lanka's protracted civil war, only one can be considered blameless either of provoking or of perpetuating the conflict: the Muslims.

But, 25 years in, they continue to endure more than their fair share of the suffering. And the injustice - as a new report warns - is starting to take its toll.

It is not simply geographical bad luck that has put Sri Lanka's Muslims in the firing line. Though they are disproportionately represented in and around the war-zone (30-40 per cent of the regional population, as opposed to eight per cent of the national total), the manner and pattern of the attacks have come to show the Muslims of the north and east are being intentionally targeted.

In the north, the Tamil Tigers have long been guilty of civilian displacement,