Sunday, July 27, 2008, 14:40 GMT, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
July 27, Colombo: Sri Lankan military said fresh clashes across the embattled North killed 13 Tigers as the leaders of South East Asian nations gathered in the Sri Lankan capital to participate in the 15th annual SAARC conference today.
Leaders from the 8-member nations, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives and Afghanistan inaugurated the summit amidst tight security with some 20,000 security personnel providing security to the participants.
In the embattled North, Sri Lankan troops launched a fierce attack on Tamil Tiger positions in Vavuniya killing seven Tigers and completely destroying 6 LTTE bunkers on Saturday (26), the military said.
In Welioya, three Tigers were killed and another 10 were injured as troops confronted the Tigers in separate incidents. Another three Tigers were killed in Jaffna in sporadic clashes with troops.
The LTTE rebels last week declared a unilateral ceasefire to coincide with the summit from July 26 to August 4. However the Sri Lankan government rejected the Tiger offer saying it is a ploy by the LTTE to regroup and strengthen it militarily when it is being weakened in the war front.
July 27, Colombo: Sri Lankan military said fresh clashes across the embattled North killed 13 Tigers as the leaders of South East Asian nations gathered in the Sri Lankan capital to participate in the 15th annual SAARC conference today.
Leaders from the 8-member nations, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives and Afghanistan inaugurated the summit amidst tight security with some 20,000 security personnel providing security to the participants.
In the embattled North, Sri Lankan troops launched a fierce attack on Tamil Tiger positions in Vavuniya killing seven Tigers and completely destroying 6 LTTE bunkers on Saturday (26), the military said.
In Welioya, three Tigers were killed and another 10 were injured as troops confronted the Tigers in separate incidents. Another three Tigers were killed in Jaffna in sporadic clashes with troops.
The LTTE rebels last week declared a unilateral ceasefire to coincide with the summit from July 26 to August 4. However the Sri Lankan government rejected the Tiger offer saying it is a ploy by the LTTE to regroup and strengthen it militarily when it is being weakened in the war front.
