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Sri Lankan soldiers kill two civilians in Jaffna

Irate government troops hacked to death two civilians in Sri Lanka's northern Jaffna peninsula, a member of parliament has charged.

Dharmalingam Sithadthan, leader of the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam, said the killings followed an altercation and exchange of fire between members of his group and a group of soldiers.

He said two soldiers were injured in the shootout near the PLOTE office at Chavakacheri. They returned later in force and attacked his office, hacking to death two civilians, including a visiting member of the Eelam People's Democratic Party, another Tamil group.

Sithadthan said a PLOT leader, Ponnuruthi Anton, was missing since the incident.

A military spokesman in Colombo confirmed the incident, but said details were awaited.

Earlier reports had said a soldier was killed in the exchange of fire.

Sources in Jaffna said the EPDP has announced a boycott of all government bodies in the peninsula unless the Colombo instituted an impartial judicial inquiry into the incident.

Though PLOT and EPDP support the government in its war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, there have often been clashes between them and the troops in the past.

UNI

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