|
Colombo: A series of battles between government forces and rebel fighters in northern Sri Lanka killed 22 guerrillas and two soldiers, the military said yesterday.
The battles on Sunday were part of a heavy increase in fighting along the front lines of the Tamil Tiger rebels' de facto state as the government vowed to crush the separatist group.
In one fierce clash in the Welioya area south of rebel-held territory, troops killed eight rebels while two soldiers died, military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said. Four separate battles in the Vavuniya area killed another 14 rebel fighters, he said.
Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan said the military's death toll was inaccurate. "That's their usual misinformation," he said.
Exaggeration
Each side routinely exaggerates its enemy's casualty figures while underreporting its own. It is impossible to independently verify the death tolls and other battlefield information provided by the warring sides because journalists are barred from the conflict zone.
The rebels have fought since 1983 to create an independent homeland for Sri Lanka's Tamil minority after decades of discrimination by governments controlled by the Sinhalese majority.
|
