28 Rebels killed in Sri Lanka fighting
A day of fighting between Sri Lankan troops and Tamil Tiger rebels killed 28 insurgents and a soldier while troops overran guerrilla bunkers in the island’s north, the military said today.
A military statement said soldiers raided six rebel bunkers in northern Mannar district, with 13 rebels and one soldier killed in the encounter.
They said scattered fighting left another 15 insurgents dead in northeastern Welioya and northern Vavuniya regions.
Both sides often exaggerate casualties inflicted upon the other while playing down their own. Independent accounts of the clashes are not available because there is no media access to the region.
The Tamil Tigers have fought since 1983 to create an independent homeland for the country’s minority ethnic Tamils, who have faced discrimination under successive governments controlled by the majority Sinhalese.
More than 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
