Monday, May 5, 2008, Rabi-ul-Sani 28, 1429    

43 perish in Sri Lanka fresh fighting

Colombo—Heavy weekend fighting between government troops and Tamil separatists in Sri Lanka’s war-ravaged northern region left 35 rebels and eight soldiers dead, the military said Sunday.

The latest battles erupted Saturday along the front lines in the Mannar and Welioya regions, the military said. In the worst fighting, soldiers killed 13 Tamil rebels in Janakapura in Welioya, said a defense ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity. Four soldiers were killed and six soldiers and 26 rebels were wounded, he said.

Sporadic fighting in the northern Mannar district killed 18 rebels and one soldier, the official said, adding that six soldiers and six rebels were wounded in that fighting.

Separate fighting in Welioya left four rebels and three soldiers dead, he said.

Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan was not immediately available for comment Saturday.

It was not possible to independently verify the military’s claims because the media are banned from the northern jungles where much of the fighting takes place. Both sides commonly exaggerate their enemy’s casualties while underplaying their own.

The government has pledged to capture the rebels’ de facto state in the north and crush them by the end of the year. But diplomats and other observers say the army is facing more resistance than expected.—AP