Sri Lankan troops smashed rebel bunkers and traded fire with guerrillas across the island's north, leaving at least 25 people dead in total, the defence ministry said yesterday. The ministry said security forces carried out "limited operations" in the regions of Mannar, Weli Oya, Vavuniya and Janakapura on Wednesday, as troops tried to advance further into rebel territories in the north.
Elsewhere, unidentified gunmen shot dead two civilians in the eastern seaport district of Trincomalee on Wednesday, the military said.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) did not comment on the ministry's latest casualty claims. Since January, government troops claim to have killed 3,663 rebels while 274 security forces personnel died in combat during the same period.
Colombo has poured a record 1.5 billion dollars into the war effort this year, hoping for a quick end to a conflict that has left tens of thousands dead since 1972. Earlier Sri Lanka pressed ahead with air and ground attacks Wednesday against Tamil Tiger rebels in the north, the defence ministry said, as the prime minister ruled out any ceasefire.
Fighter planes gave air support to ground troops advancing toward rebel-held areas in Mannar district and bombed a suspected guerrilla training facility in the area, the ministry said. Troops killed at least nine rebels during sporadic clashes in the tense northeastern Wanni region on Tuesday, according to the ministry, which placed its government losses at five soldiers wounded.
Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake late Tuesday vowed to press ahead with the military campaign in the north and ruled out a peace accord. "We are not going to have any type of ceasefire agreement in Sri Lanka in future and will also continue with our goal to eliminate terrorism from this country," he said at a ceremony to honour soldiers who died in combat.
Wickremanayake said Tiger rebel chief Velupillai Prabhakaran's days were numbered. "Prabhakaran, your days are numbered, your end is not far away. Now victory is within the grasp of our heroic security forces," he said.