In December 2006 Sri Lankan government officials announced their plans to drive the LTTE out of the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka, and then use the full strength of the military to defeat the LTTE in the north of the country. The government stated that LTTE was firing artillery towards civilian settlements in the east and were using 35,000 people as human shields. These claims were later backed up by civilians in the area, who told reporters that they were held by force by the Tamil Tigers. On 7 November 2006, amidst conflicting claims, over 45 Tamil civilians were killed in what is known as the Vaharai bombing.