While speaking to the media, Ranjith Gunasekara, a police spokesman reported that there were around 15 assailants, who stormed the Maharaja Organisation’s main studio near Colombo, the capital city of Sri Lanka. Gunasekara further added that the assailants opened fire and hurled hand grenades. They also forced the network’s three television stations and four radio channels off air for several hours.

No reports of injuries have been received so far. While the firefighters were battling the resulting blaze, an army bomb squad was also called in to comb the building for more explosives.

The state media also criticised the broadcaster for devoting too much airtime to a suicide attack by a Tamil Tiger separatist last week. While speaking to the media, Sanath Balasuriya, the president of the Working Journalists’ Association said, “We strongly condemned the attack on the MTV offices and we urge the authorities to speedily investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

While condemning the terrorist strike, the US embassy in Colombo said that it was the latest in a series of criminal attacks on the independent media in Sri Lanka.

Poddala Jayantha, the media rights activist said that the attack followed a defamation campaign against the television network by a section of the state media.

President Mahinda Rajapakse already announced that the offenders would not be spared at any cost and ordered the inspector general of police to nab the goons as early as possible.

Several journalists, newspaper organisations, media houses and even newspaper delivery boys in Sri Lanka have been attacked as part of the bitter ethnic war between the Sri Lankan security forces and the rebel Tigers.

The Sri Lankan government and police have also confronted the station over its coverage of the conflict between the Lankan army and LTTE rebels. A number of civilians were killed in the clash between Sri Lankan army and Tiger rebels in an attempt to capture the Tiger strongholds in the north of the island.

The Lankan government announced on Monday (January 5) that the armed forces of Sri Lanka had captured the rebel-held town of Oddusudan and chased Tiger fighters out of their de facto state headquarters in the north.

The Lankan army also reported that they seized control of the key Elephant Pass which links the northern Jaffna peninsula to the mainland.