Heavy fighting erupted in northern Sri Lanka on Wednesday as government troops tried to take Tamil rebel-held territory, the defence ministry said, reporting scores of guerrillas killed or wounded.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) launched a major attack against military positions in Mannar district and troops retaliated, the ministry said in a statement. “The LTTE has suffered heavy casualties, with scores believed killed,” the ministry said, adding that four government soldiers were wounded.
Soldiers killed: Within hours of the latest offensive, suspected Tiger rebels struck in the deep south, away from the usual conflict zone, killing three soldiers guarding a highway, a military spokesman said.
The attack took place at Buttala, 350 kilometres south of the mini-state run by the Tigers in the island’s north. “Three soldiers were killed in this LTTE attack,” spokesman Udaya Nanayakkara said. “Troops retaliated, but we are yet to get details of casualties among the terrorists.” Military officials said heavy clashes continued during the day just outside the de facto rebel state, but gave no details. It was not clear how the military estimated rebel casualties in the latest surge in fighting. Dead bodies of enemy combatants are rarely recovered by either side. There was no immediate word from the rebels about the latest battles. The defence ministry said troops went on the offensive to capture Adampan village from the Tigers in coastal Mannar district. “Troops continued to surge into LTTE territory towards Adampan junction in a fresh offensive launched at 6:00 am,” the defence ministry said.
Rebel artillery fire was neutralised by security forces, the ministry said in a statement. It said 23 Tiger rebels were killed in separate clashes on Tuesday, while another 28 rebels and three government soldiers were killed on Monday. According to latest ministry figures, at least 1,358 rebels have been killed so far this year. The military estimates the rebel strength at 5,000 combatants. The military counts 80 soldiers and police killed over the same period.
Casualty figures provided by both sides differ wildly and cannot be independently verified. Journalists and human rights workers are barred from frontline and rebel-held areas. The Sri Lankan government last month officially pulled out of a truce with the rebels, who have fought for more than three decades for an independent ethnic homeland in the Sinhalese-majority island.