Sri Lanka accused Tamil Tiger rebels of shelling a state-run hospital on Tuesday as fighting across the northern front lines reportedly left at least 35 rebels dead.The hospital in Mannar district was partially damaged by heavy artillery from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the defence ministry said, adding that a few shells had also fallen close to a nearby state-run school. “The explosions had caused panic and trauma among patients and civilians who were immediately evacuated by troops into safer shelters,” the ministry said in a statement. It was not immediately clear if there were casualties.
Meanwhile, security forces killed at least 35 rebels in fighting in the north on Monday, the ministry said, placing its own losses at six soldiers wounded. Six Tamil Tiger rebels riding on a tractor were killed in an army attack in Vavuniya, the military said. Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan was not available for comment. Casualty numbers given by both sides cannot be independently confirmed since Colombo bars journalists and rights groups from front-line areas.