Fifteen people have died in fresh fighting as Sri Lankan troops stepped up attacks against Tamil Tiger rebels in the island's north, the defence ministry said on Friday. Six soldiers died in an accidental explosion in the northern district of Vavuniya on Friday when they were examining unexploded mines unearthed from the forward defence lines, the military said.
Elsewhere, government forces killed eight Tamil Tiger rebels in overnight clashes in Vavuniya, the ministry said. A Tamil man was shot dead in the northern town of Jaffna on Friday, the military said, blaming the killing on the rebels.
There was no immediate comment from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who have been fighting for an independent homeland for minority Tamils from the majority Sinhalese community. Thousands have died since the separatist campaign erupted in 1972.
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