Rebels' office attacked in Sri Lanka
Attackers hurled more than five hand grenades into a political office of the Tamil Tigers in eastern Sri Lanka today, a pro-rebel website reported.
The attack damaged the building, but five rebels escaped, the TamilNet website said.
“The attackers, who approached the office (on) a motorbike, lobbed more than five grenades, one by one, into the building through the main entrance,” TamilNet said, quoting unidentified witnesses.
Five rebel political officials, “who were inside the building narrowly escaped from the attack,” TamilNet said.
The Defence Ministry in the capital, Colombo, confirmed that there was an attack, but said it had no immediate details.
The attack reportedly took place in Batticaloa, the area’s main town.
Scores of people have been killed in eastern Sri Lanka since a split in the rebel movement a year ago.
The Tamil Tigers began fighting in 1983 for a separate homeland for minority ethnic Tamils in the country’s north and east, claiming discrimination by the majority Sinhalese. The conflict killed nearly 65,000 people before the 2002 cease-fire.
Post-truce peace talks have been stalled since 2003 over rebel demands for wider autonomy.
