Sri Lanka's military said 52 Tamil Tigers and 11 soldiers were killed in fresh fighting in the island's far north on Wednesday as renewed civil war escalates, but the rebels disputed the numbers. The Tigers said 20 soldiers were killed and more than 100 were wounded in the clash on the Jaffna peninsula, and that just one of their fighters was killed.
There were no independent accounts of what had happened or how many people were killed. The fighting comes during almost daily clashes between the two sides, and also after an air strike last week killed the leader of the Tigers' political wing in a body blow to hopes of ending the two-decade conflict soon.
The military said fierce fighting erupted along a heavily defended border that separates government and rebel-held territory on the peninsula, and that troops held territory on the rebel side of the line for two hours. "The troops went ahead and captured the terrorist line and in the fighting killed 52 terrorists and a large number of other LTTE cadres were injured in this firefight," said a spokesman at the Media Centre for National Security, declining to be named in line with policy.
"Eleven soldiers were killed and 41 were injured in the clashes." Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiraiyan said the Tigers foiled a bid to overrun their bunkers on the Jaffna forward defence line.
"The Sri Lankan military came with the support of heavy artillery, multi-barrel rocket launchers, mortars and back-up fire from helicopters and tanks," Ilanthiraiyan said by telephone from rebel-held Kilinochchi. "It was a wide-range attempt. It's from Kilali to Muhamalai on the A9 highway. The clash lasted about two hours, and they fell back to their original positions with heavy casualties," he added.
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