Sri Lanka: 25 years of civil war

Colombo, 1983: The LTTE's first attack against government forces led to rioting against the Tamil community in Sri Lanka. The 'Black July' riots are seen as the starting point of the conflict Photograph: JLR/AP

Jaffna peninsula, 1986: Tamil guerillas leave Jaffna by boat, bound for India Photograph: Michel Philippot/Sygma/Corbis

Boosa, 1986: Young prisoners stare out from behind a barbed wire fence at a government detention camp for suspected Tamil separatist rebels Photograph: Sandro Tucci/Time & Life Pictures/Getty

Colombo, 1986: The tail section of an Air Lanka plane that was blown apart by a bomb before takeoff at Colombo airport, killing at least 16 people. The bomb was attributed to the LTTE Photograph: Sandro Tucci/Time & Life Pictures/Getty

Sri Lanka, 1987: The LTTE leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, sits flanked by two Indian guards below a picture of Ché Guevera Photograph: Sandro Tucci/Time & Life Pictures/Getty

Colombo, 1987: The then Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, ducks a rifle butt attack by a Sri Lankan naval rating during a guard of honour, after he signed a controversial peace pact with the Colombo government Photograph: Sena Vidanagama/AFP/Getty Images

Colombo , 1987: A woman passes stacks of coffins outside a morgue containing the victims of a car bomb which killed 111 people and injured almost 300 Photograph: Liu Heung Shing/AP

Trincomalee, 1990: Indian peacekeeping soldiers pull out of Sri Lanka after three years of trying to end the civil war Photograph: Robert Nickelsberg/Time & Life Pictures/Getty

Jaffna, 1991: Young Tamil Tiger fighters, some of them children Photograph: Roger Hutchings/Corbis

Delhi, India, 1991: The funeral of Rajiv Gandhi, who was assassinated by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber while campaigning in Tamil Nadu Photograph: Baldev Kapoor /Sygma/Corbis

Colombo, 1993: A soldier watches the funeral procession of the slain Sri Lankan president, Ranasinghe Premadasa, who was killed in a Tamil Tiger bomb attack Photograph: Doug Curran/AFP/Getty Images

Thamilaval, 1995: Women soldiers fighting for the LTTE Photograph: Profile Press /Rex Features

Colombo, 1996: A police officer calls for aid for a man injured by a car bomb. Two explosions ripped apart many buildings in the city centre, killing at least 50 people and injuring more than 1,000 Photograph: Dexter Cruz/AP

Colombo, 1999: Sri Lanka's then president, Chandrika Kumaratunga, is sworn into office for a second term. Kumaratunga lost an eye in a Tamil Tiger bomb attack Photograph: John Macdougall/AFP/Getty Images

Jaffna, 2000: A Sri Lankan soldier walks past a wall riddled with bullet holes, as he patrols the Jaffna suburb of Colombuthurai. Jaffna was the location of some of the most bitter fighting between government and LTTE forces Photograph: Anuruddha Lokuhapuarachchi/Reuters

Colombo, 2001: Tamil Tiger rebels devastated the Bandaranaike airport outside the capital after first attacking an adjoining military air base. A total of 13 aircraft were destroyed and 18 people were killed Photograph: Sena Vidanagama/AFP

Oslo, Norway, 2002: The third round of peace negotiations resume between the Tamil Tigers and the government of Sri Lanka Photograph: Heiko Junge/AP

Batticaloa, 2004: The head of the eastern faction of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Vinayagamoorthi Muralitharan, or Colonel Karuna, led a split from the LTTE, taking 6,000 fighters with him Photograph: Julia Drapkin/AP

September 2008: Prabhakaran with 10 alleged Tamil Tiger suicide bombers who carried out a devastating attack against a military complex on 9 September Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Akkaraayan, 2008: LTTE rebels fire a heavy machine gun during fighting against Sri Lankan government soldiers Photograph: Tamilnet/AFP

Puthukkudiyiruppu, 2009: A Sri Lankan soldier stands near a tank as it fires a shell at LTTE positions Photograph: Reuters

Chettikulam, April 2009: Displaced Tamil civilians at Kadirgamh camp after fleeing the escalating armed conflict Photograph: Pedro Ugarte/AFP

Puthukkudiyiruppu, 2009: An elderly Sri Lankan Tamil civilian sits among the rubble of a village Photograph: Pedro Ugarte/AFP

Northern Sri Lanka, May 2009: An injured Tamil woman cradles her child inside the 'no fire zone' Photograph: WarWithoutWitness.com/Reuters

London, UK, 2009: Tamil protesters demonstrate outside parliament against alleged human rights abuses in Sri Lanka Photograph: Oli Scarff/Getty

Putumatalan, 2009: A Sri Lankan government soldier rides in an armoured personal carrier near the 'no fire zone' where they have encircled the LTTE Photograph: David Gray/Reuters

Colombo, 17 May 2009: Supporters wave the Sri Lankan flag as they celebrate the return of the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapakse, from Jordan. The president declared that the island's separatist Tamil Tiger rebels had been 'defeated militarily' after decades of bitter ethnic bloodshed Photograph: Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images

Colombo, 18 May 2009: People read newspapers which report the Sri Lankan military's victory over the LTTE Photograph: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP/Getty Images

Mullaitivu, May 18: A government soldier carrying a child inside the war zone as the last of the surviving Tamil civilians are evacuated Photograph: Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence/AFP/Getty Images

Colombo, May 19: President Rajapakse arrives at parliament to deliver his speech announcing the final defeat of the Tamil Tigers Photograph: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP/Getty Images

May 19: The alleged corpse of Prabhakaran Photograph: Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence/REUTERS