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Lankan army kills 37 Tamil rebels

Army soldiers killed six Tamil rebels in north-eastern Sri Lanka, a day after 31 guerrillas were reported killed in an upsurge in fighting in the country's protracted civil war, military officials said today.

The latest fatalities occurred on Sunday in eastern Trincomalee, 230km north-east of Colombo, and in Paranthan, 280km north of Colombo, military officials said. Five rebels were killed in Trincomalee and one in Paranthan.

The most fatalities occurred near Jaffna, a former rebel capital, where troops shot and killed at least 17 guerrillas on Saturday, military officials said.

Jaffna, 300km north of Colombo, has been under government control since troops drove the rebels into the jungles three years ago.

In Batticaloa, 220km east of Colombo, troops killed at least nine rebels on Saturday. Also on Saturday, troops killed five rebels near the strategic town of Mankulam, 250km north of Colombo.

On their clandestine radio, the rebels admitted losing 15 fighters in Saturday's battles, discounting military claims that 31 guerrillas were killed.

There was no independent confirmation of the contradictory claims, as neither the government nor the rebels allow journalists in the war theatre.

UNI

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