to number a few hundred. The group regularly got into clashes with the LTTE. In 2006, the Sri Lankan Armed Forces launched a major campaign to evict the LTTE from the east of the country, with the assistance of the Karuna Faction. Together the coalition succeeded in clearing the east of Sri Lanka by July 2007. Karuna has alleged that Prabhakaran intentionally dragged out peace talks with Sri Lanka to give rebels additional time to re-arm for further combat. He said that the LTTE lost about 70% of its fighting capacity due the TMVP separating from the LTTE. In March 2007, Colonel Karuna, accompanied by Supreme Commander Pillaiyan, Senior Commander Jeyam and other TVMP officials spent two days at a TMVP base in the east. A number of his statements there were widely reported. At the same time, the TMVP announced that it was setting up a "special attack force" and a "spy attack force". Internal cohesion within the TMVP has been a problem in the past before, particularly disagreements between Pillaiyan and Karuna over finance. Between May–June, a number of cadres were killed in inter-factional clashes, most notably an intelligence operative named Senthujan Senthamorthanan. Another TMVP cadre named Seelan was also badly beaten but luckily escaped. Pillaiyan was reportedly targeted as well but escaped to Trincomalee with about 200 supporters, although he has since reconciled with Karuna. Allegations of human rights violations Colonel Karuna was the LTTE head of the Eastern Province in 1990 when 600 unarmed police officers who surrendered to the group were subsequently massacred. When Colonel Karuna was part of the LTTE, he was also involved in the massacre of Muslims, including the Kattankudy and Eravur massacres in the Eastern Province. RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has accused him of muzzling local journalists by forming death squads to silence those who oppose his views. His armed groups have been blamed for the increasing involuntary disappearances of civilians in the Jaffna peninsula by several human rights groups. They have also been accused of taking part in death squad activity against civilians. Additionally, they are also accused of child soldier recruitment by UNICEF, Human Rights Watch, and others. A report by the United States Department of State claims that Karuna's group "was believed also to have killed 20 civilians." Karuna has categorically denied these allegations in interviews, claiming the LTTE is trying to discredit his party. Imprisonment in the