Sri Lanka violence kills 22: Government

A roadside blast in Sri Lanka's restive eastern region has killed two policemen while fighting in the north left at least 19 rebels and one soldier dead, the Government said.

A Japanese national visiting a Tokyo funded project in Batticaloa narrowly escaped the mine attack, but two policemen providing security for the group died in the explosion, the Japanese embassy here said.

"Our national is safe, but we are saddened that two Sri Lankan policemen, died in the Claymore attack," an official said.

The mine attack in Batticaloa also injured five people, including a civilian and two elite police commandos, the defence ministry said, blaming the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

The Government earlier held elections in Batticaloa, after ejecting the rebels from the east last year.

Tamil Tiger rebels, who have been fighting for a separate homeland since 1972, are now largely confined to the island's north.

Sri Lanka warplanes bombed two suspected rebel targets in the north, the ministry said.

Russian built Mi24 helicopter gunships provided air cover for troops in northern Mannar, while fighter jets later pounded a building used by rebels to build boats in the guerrilla-controlled Kilinochchi area.

"Pilots have confirmed the targets were accurately hit," the statement said.

Fighting across the war-ravaged northern district, meanwhile, killed at least one soldier and 19 rebels on Tuesday, the Defence Ministry said.

There was no immediate comment from the LTTE, who are fighting to carve out an independent state for minority Tamils in the north and east of the majority Sinhalese island.

Security forces have killed at least 2,375 rebels since January while some 137 soldiers have died, according to the ministry.

Casualty figures cannot be independently verified because journalists and rights groups are not allowed access to the embattled areas.

Fighting has escalated since January, when Sri Lanka formally pulled out of a six-year Norwegian-arranged truce with the Tigers.

Source: ABC