Thousands Killed in Sri Lanka

The military of Sri Lanka, the primarily Buddhist tear-drop shaped nation off the tip of India, reportedly has killed thousands in the past three months:

U.N.: 6,500 civilians dead in Sri Lanka fighting

India demands immediate cease-fire as offensive targeting rebels rages on

AP Fri., April 24, 2009

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – Two top Indian officials headed Friday to Sri Lanka to demand an immediate cease-fire in the bloody civil war as a private U.N. document reported that nearly 6,500 ethnic Tamil civilians were killed in the last three months of fighting.

Concern for the safety of the civilians trapped in the war zone has increased in recent weeks as the government pushed ahead with its offensive to crush the Tamil Tiger rebels and end the nation’s quarter-century civil war.

On Monday, the military broke through rebel fortifications on the edge of a previously declared “no fire” zone along the northeastern coast, sparking an exodus of more than 100,000 civilians. The rebels said at least 1,000 civilians were killed in that battle and the Red Cross said hundreds had been killed or wounded…

‘All killing must stop’
“We are very unhappy at the continued killing in Sri Lanka. All killing must stop. There must be an immediate cessation of all hostilities,” External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishu Prakash said in a statement Thursday.

International rights groups have accused the government of shelling densely populated civilian areas in the war zone and accused the rebels of holding the civilians hostage for use as human shields against the government offensive. Both sides deny the accusations.

At least 6,432 civilians were killed in the intense fighting over the past three months and 13,946 wounded, according to a private U.N. document circulated among diplomatic missions in Sri Lanka in recent days. The casualties were reported as “verified data” in the document, which was given to The Associated Press by a foreign diplomat Friday. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30381065/

Buddhists, like original Christians, are supposed to not kill other human beings:

Buddhism teaches that whether we have global peace or global war is up to us at every moment. The situation is not hopeless and out of our hands. If we don’t do anything, who will? Peace or war is our decision. The fundamental goal of Buddhism is peace…The doctrine of karma teaches that force and violence, even to the level of killing, never solves anything… The most fundamental moral precept in Buddhist teaching is respect for life and the prohibition against taking life… Unlike almost all other religions, Buddhism teaches that there are no exceptions to this prohibition and no expedient arguments are admitted.>Epstein R. BUDDHIST IDEAS FOR ATTAINING WORLD PEACE. Lectures for the Global Peace Studies Program, November 7 & 9, 1988 http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/BUDDHIST%20IDEAS%20FOR%20ATTAINING%20WORLD%20PEACE.htm viewed

And while I noticed that there were a lot of statues of Buddha in Sri Lanka when I visited it, obviously some of the Buddhists there have a differing view of killing than what was reported about it.

The problem in Sri Lanka between the basically Hindu Tamils and the Buddhist Sinhalese have been going on for decades.

Based upon my understanding of Bible prophecy, it is likely that they will stop (at least temporarily) killing each other by the time when Daniel 11:44 gets fulfilled. It would be nice if it stopped much sooner (as it could stop now).

Some articles of possibly related interest may include:

Military Service and the Churches of God: Do Real Christians Participate in Carnal Warfare? Here are current and historical perspectives on a matter which show the beliefs of the true church on military participation. Is war proper for Christians?
India, Its Biblical Past and Future: Any Witness? The Bible discusses the origins of those of Indian heritage and discusses some of the witness to them.
Asia in Prophecy What is Ahead for China? Is it a “King of the East”? What will happen to nearly all the Chinese, Russians, Indians, and others of Asia? Who has the 200,000,000 man army related to Armageddon?