COLOMBO - At least 61 Tamil Tiger rebels and five government troops were killed in fresh fighting across Sri LankaÂ’s embattled north, the defence ministry said on Friday. Heavy fighting along the de facto border with territory held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) saw fierce clashes on Wednesday and Thursday, leaving a total of 66 combatants killed, the ministry said.It said security forces had captured key locations from the Tigers in the coastal district of Mannar over the past two days. A pro-rebel Tamil MP and his driver were killed in a bomb attack inside rebel-held territory on Thursday, officials said. The rebels accused the security forces of carrying out the attack.
So far this year, the defence ministry has reported that security forces have killed at least 1,901 rebels for the loss of 112 government soldiers.
Three Sri Lankan MPs have also been killed this year, including the lawmaker killed Thursday.