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Tamil Tigers say 60 Sri Lankan troops killed in clashes
Tamil Tiger rebels say they have killed 60 Sri Lankan troops advancing towards their de facto capital, a pro-rebel report said, a claim the government denied on Sunday.
- Agencies
- Published: 12:07 December 21, 2008
Colombo: Tamil Tiger rebels say they have killed 60 Sri Lankan troops advancing towards their de facto capital, a pro-rebel report said, a claim the government denied on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the government said that its troops captured the strategic village of Nedunkerni in the northeast on Sunday.
The insurgents struck on Saturday as the soldiers were preparing an assault in Iranamadu village, just south of the guerrilla headquarters of Kilinochchi, and forced the troops to retreat from recently seized territory, the rebel-affiliated TamilNet website reported.
The guerrillas recovered 12 bodies of Sri Lankan soldiers and 150 other troops were wounded, the report said. It did not provide the number of rebel losses.
Military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said there were a "few" deaths and some soldiers were reported missing. But he dismissed the casualty figures reported by TamilNet and said soldiers were not in retreat.
"We have not pulled back. We are in the same locations," Nanayakkara said.
Soldiers trying to capture the rebels' northeastern stronghold seized Nedunkerni town, a key crossroads that connected three of the rebels' main supply routes, Nanayakkara said.
He said soldiers inflicted "damages" to the rebels but did not give details.
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