January 07, 2008, 09:45
Sri Lankan troops killed seven Tamil Tigers in the island's far north today, taking the death toll from fierce fighting to 73, mostly rebels, since Saturday alone, the military said. Troops destroyed three rebel bunkers in the far northern Jaffna peninsula, the latest in a series of confrontations along a shared "border" that separates government territory from the rebels' de facto state in the north.
Weekend clashes in the northern Jaffna Peninsula, northern district of Vavuniya and northwestern district of Mannar amid now near-daily air raids, land and sea battles and bombings killed 62 rebels and four soldiers, the military said, as a 25 year civil war escalates. "Troops attacked three bunkers in Jaffna and killed seven LTTE terrorists," a spokesperson at the Media Centre for National Security said, asking not to be named in line with policy.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who seek to carve out an independent state in north and east Sri Lanka, were not immediately available for comment. There were no independent accounts of how many people were killed or what had happened. Analysts say both sides tend to overstate enemy losses and play down their own.
Ceasefire pact
President Mahinda Rajapaksa's administration notified mediator Norway late on Thursday that it was formally scrapping a six-year ceasefire pact that fell apart on the ground in early 2006. Well over 5 000 people have been killed since then. The government has given a 14-day notice period, meaning the paper truce officially ends on January 16.
Its finish dashes hopes of resurrecting collapsed peace talks anytime soon to end a war that has killed around 70 000 people since 1983. The government has vowed to wipe out the Tigers militarily, setting the stage for what many fear will be a bloody battle for the north.
While the government has had the upper hand in recent months, killing senior rebel figures including the Tigers' political wing leader and military intelligence head, military analysts say the rebels have retained their strike capability and see no clear winner on the horizon. - Reuters
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