S.Lanka says captures rebel positions, kills dozens

Tue Jan 29, 2008 6:10am EST

(Adds fresh fighting, pro-rebel report on civilian deaths)

COLOMBO, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Sri Lankan troops have captured 16 Tamil Tiger bunkers in the northwest and killed at least 22 rebels in fighting on Tuesday, the military said, a day after clashes killed at least 28 Tigers and two soldiers.

The military says it has killed scores of rebels since a six-year ceasefire between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was scrapped on Jan. 16.

"The troops captured 16 LTTE terrorist bunkers in Viyattankulam and Pallikullam in Mannar. The ground troops confirmed at least 22 terrorists were killed," said a military official, asking not to be named in line with policy.

Meanwhile, a pro-rebel Web site said 8 civilians including children were killed and 35 wounded on Tuesday in a roadside bomb targeting a school bus, which it blamed on the army. A military spokesman denied the report.

The latest violence took place in the northwest district of Mannar, an area separating government territory from the Tigers' de facto state in the north.

The Tigers are fighting for an independent state for minority Tamils in the north and east of the Indian Ocean island.

There were no independent accounts of the clashes. Analysts say both sides tend to overstate enemy losses, while playing down their own.

An estimated 70,000 people have been killed in the two-decade conflict.

The government has vowed to wipe out the Tigers militarily, fuelling fears of a protracted full-scale war.

The Colombo government has gained the upper hand in recent months, killing senior rebel figures including the Tigers' political leader and military intelligence chief. But, military analysts say the rebels have retained their strike capability and see no clear winner on the horizon.

The government scrapped the truce earlier this month, saying the Tigers had used it to regroup and rearm. Nordic truce monitors, asked to leave Sri Lanka by the government, say both sides repeatedly violated the ceasefire. (Reporting By Ranga Sirilal; Editing by Katie Nguyen)



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