| Aranthalawa massacre | |
|---|---|
 Dead bodies of young Buddhist monks lying on floor, after they were massacred on 2 June 1987 | |
| Location | Aranthalawa, Sri Lanka |
| Coordinates | 7°31′33.3″N 81°28′35.4″E / 7.525917°N 81.476500°E |
| Date | June 2, 1987 (UTC+5:30) |
Attack type | massacre |
| Deaths | 37 |
| Perpetrator | Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam |
The Aranthalawa massacre was the massacre of 33 Buddhist monks, most of them young novice monks, and four civilians by cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam organization (the LTTE, commonly known as the Tamil Tigers) on June 2, 1987, close to the village of Aranthalawa, in the Ampara District of Eastern Sri Lanka. The massacre is among the most notorious and devastating atrocities committed by the LTTE during the history of the Sri Lankan Civil War, and continues to be commemorated 35 years on.