Sri Lankas president on Sunday ordered government troops to halt their offensive against cornered Tamil rebels for two days to give tens of thousands of civilians a chance to escape the fighting.
The brief pause in hostilities comes after increasingly urgent international calls for civilians to be protected as the military attempts to finally crush the separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas, who have been pushed close to defeat.
The United Nations estimates that 100,000 civilians are trapped in a government-designated "no-fire zone," which is the last remaining territory held by the rebels.
President Mahinda Rajapakses office said the ceasefire would allow civilians to leave the conflict zone and to celebrate the Sinhala and Tamil New Year on Monday and Tuesday. "His Excellency has directed the armed forces of the state to restrict their operations during the New Year to those of a defensive nature," it said in a statement. It added that the halt would enable Tamils "to celebrate these festivities in a suitable atmosphere and to have uninhibited freedom of movement from the no-fire zone."
The Tigers, who are accused of holding the civilians hostage, have suffered months of battlefield setbacks that could finally end their campaign for an independent Tamil homeland after 37 years of violence. Rajapakse reiterated the governments demands that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) lay down arms and surrender to security forces who have forced the guerrillas into a strip of coastal jungle in the islands north-east.
"In the true spirit of the season, it is timely for the LTTE to acknowledge its military defeat," the statement said. "The LTTE must also renounce terrorism and violence permanently." The Tigers endured further major losses last week when at least 550 were killed in four days of fighting to defend a village which eventually fell to government forces, officials said.
The state-run Sunday Observer reported that the remaining Tiger fighters had opened fresh talks with officials from Norway, which brokered an ineffectual peace deal in 2002.
It also said the US ambassador in Colombo, Robert Blake, had recently met with Sri Lankan army chief Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka and requested a week-long ceasefire, which was turned down. Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was left with few senior comrades after the latest clashes and may try to flee the island during any ceasefire, the Observer added.
The Sri Lankan government, which had vowed to finish off the Tigers by the New Year, has repeatedly stressed it would not agree to any truce short of outright victory.
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