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Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Militants killed in fresh clashes in the north
2008-12-10
(AKI) - At least five Tamil Tiger militants have been killed in fresh clashes in northern Sri Lanka where government forces claim to be closing in on the rebel capital, the Defence Ministry said on Tuesday. The ministry said there was conflict across several fronts on Monday, inflicting "maximum damage" on the rebels.

The separatist rebels were killed in the district of Mullaittivu, which borders Kilinochchi, believed to be the political headquarters of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Officials in Sri Lanka claim government troops are poised to finally capture the political headquarters of the rebel Tamil Tigers after months of fierce fighting.
They've said that a lot more often than they've done it.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa's government is also reported to have called snap local elections in key regions of Sri Lanka, in a bid to gauge public support for the ongoing conflict.

The LTTE did not comment on the latest military statement, but accused the army of setting off a roadside mine in Mullaittivu on Monday, killing three people. "Three civilians including a mother and her nine-year-old child were killed when a Claymore attack of the army hit the motorbike the three were travelling on," the LTTE said on Tuesday.

The attacks came as troops fought on the outskirts of Kilinochchi, where the Tamil Tigers maintain their political base.

The national parliament on Monday approved the annual budget for 2009, which allocates a record 1.6 billion dollars to the war effort, up from 1.5 billion dollars in 2008.
Posted by:Fred

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