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Sunday April 20, 2:13 PMTigers say Sri Lanka bombing hit tsunami survivors' homes
Aircraft carried out the bombing raid in the seas off Mullaitivu on Saturday evening after spy planes spotted the rebel boat formation, the defence ministry said in a statement. "The air raid was successful," the statement said without giving details. The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who are resisting a major military thrust against their de facto mini state in the northern Wanni region, said two civilians were wounded in the air attack. "Many of the tsunami homes built with the assistance of the German Red Cross were damaged in this bombing," the Tigers said in a statement. "More than 20 boats and other fishing equipment belonging to the fishermen of the area were also destroyed." The air strike came as ground battles raged along front lines in Wanni where the military reported that 28 rebels and one government soldier were killed on Friday alone. Security forces have killed at least 2,903 rebels since the start of January while 175 government soldiers have died in action during the same period, according to defence ministry figures. Casualty numbers cannot be independently verified as Colombo bars journalists and aid workers from travelling to embattled areas. Both sides are known to offer sharply varying casualty figures. Tens of thousands of people have died in over three decades of fighting. |
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