Sri Lankan soldiers killed at least 32 Tamil separatists in several battles aimed at capturing the last rebel enclave in the islands war-ravaged norrth, the military said Friday The army has ousted the Tamil Tigers from most of their strongholds in a hard-fought offensive the government hopes will end the 25-year-old civil war.
Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said troops confirmed 32 guerrillas were killed, with 15 bodies recovered, in fighting around Puthukkudiyiruppu, the last rebel-held town. He provided no details of government casualties. On Thursday, soldiers captured the last remaining medical facility held by the rebels in the north, the military said.