| Another day, another dozen or so rebels iced. |
A defense ministry official said the latest battles erupted Wednesday along the front lines of the island's civil war, with the worst fighting in the Welioya region where soldiers killed 17 rebels. The official said three soldiers were wounded in that fighting. Other clashes Wednesday in the Mannar and Vavuniya regions bordering the rebels' de facto state in the north killed three guerrillas and two soldiers, he said.
Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan was not immediately available for comment.
Government forces have for the past several months tried to break into the rebels' well-guarded northern strongholds from four main fronts, promising to crush the insurgents and dismantle their de facto administration by the end of the year. But military analysts have said the military's progress has been slower than expected and the rebels retain much of their capacity to resist.