The  LTTE  (Liberation Tigers of  Tamil  Elam) established by Vellupilai Prabhakaran in1975, for carving out a Tamil national state on the northern and eastern flanks of Sri Lanka, counts suicide bombers amongst its cadres.  The first suicide operation of LTTE, directed against Nelliady army camp, killed 40 security force personnel on 5 July, 1987.  The subsequent attack that came on 12 July, 1990 was against a Lankan sea vessel at Trincomalee naval base using an explosive laden boat.  LTTE 'sea tigers' have since then perfected their deadly art on blue waters.  There were 85 reported instances of suicide bombing between 1987 and 2007 on land and sea, and lately by air.  These suicide bombers have come from both genders.  LTTE's high profile suicide killings include Lankan Deputy Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratne on 2 March, 1991, former Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi on 21 May, 1991 and Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadas on May Day of 1993.  Then President Chandrika Kumartunga lost her one eye when her rally in Colombo was attacked on 18 December, 1999.  The 28 November, 2007 attack when an LTTE woman exploded herself at the office of Douglas Devananda, the Minister for Social Welfare, was perhaps the first suicide bombing in the world captured live on camera.