Key statistics

1982
First Recorded Activity

First Attack

Profile Last Updated

How to Cite

Crenshaw, M., & Robinson, K. (2025). Mapping Militants Project. Rice University. https://doi.org/10.25613/G0K4-WF70
Mapping Militants Project. “Tamil Eelam Liberation Army .” Last modified . https://mappingmilitants.org/node/526/

Profile Contents

Narrative

Narrative of the Organization's History

Organization

Leadership, Name Changes, Size Estimates, Resources, Geographic Locations

Strategy

Ideology, Aims, Political Activities, Targets, and Tactics

Interactions

Foreign Designations and Listings, Community Relations, Relations with Other Groups, State Sponsors and External Influences

Maps

Mapping relationships with other militant groups over time in regional maps

Main Tabs Group

Overview
Formed: 
January 1, 1982
Disbanded: 
January 1, 1985

The Tamil Eelam Liberation Army (TELA) was the military wing of one of the formerly large Tamil militant groups, the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO). In 1982, a small faction of TELA broke away from TELO, led by "Oberoi" Devan. Shortly after the split, TELA aligned itself with PLOTE, another Tamil militant group that had fought both the LTTE and TELO in the past. The group, however, was short-lived; after the death of Devan in 1983 by two suspected LTTE militants, the group went into decline. By 1985, TELA had succumbed to in-fighting, split into two, and was finally disbanded.

Organization

Vertical Tabs

Strategy

Vertical Tabs

Interactions

Vertical Tabs