32 killed in north Sri Lanka, additional security for south

At least 31 Tamil Tigers and a soldier were killed in fierce clashes between the rebels and troops in restive northern Sri Lanka, even as the government on Tuesday decided to draft in 2,000 paramilitary personnel for the Sinhalese-dominated south to fend off LTTE attacks.

Army troops stormed and destroyed four Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) bunkers in Pallikulam in Mannar and killed ten rebels on Tuesday, besides injuring scores, the government's Media Centre for National Security said.

In Parapakandal area of the same region, troops destroyed two LTTE bunkers and killed five guerrillas manning them, it said. In the wake of a spate of attacks in the Sinhalese- dominated southern Sri Lanka, the authorities decided to beef up the security there by recruiting village defence personnel.

"We have decided to enlist an additional 2,000 personnel for the Village Defence Department to increase security in the south that came under attacks from the militants recently," a military spokesman said adding, there was no proposal to increase the strength of troops in the region.

The decision was taken after a string of suspected LTTE attacks that left 37 civilians and three policemen dead.

Source: newindpress.com