Civilians flee after Sri Lanka police fire heavy arms into Tamil Tiger area: rebels

Associated Press, Sun October 8, 2006 08:50 EDT . COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Police commandos directed heavy arms fire into Tamil Tiger areas in eastern Sri Lanka - on Sunday, forcing civilians to flee, as separate attacks by the guerrillas left one policeman and a soldier dead, rebel and military officials said. Meanwhile, suspected rebels opened fire on three policemen at a checkpoint outside Eravur town in Sri Lanka - 's east on Sunday, triggering a gunbattle that left one officer dead, said a defense ministry official on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media.

He said the attackers fled the scene after the police started firing.

District senior police officer Maxi Procter said he believed the attackers suffered some wounds because blood stains were found in the area where they launched the assault. One civilian was also wounded, he said.

On the northern Jaffna Peninsula, one soldier was killed Sunday when rebels fired artillery and mortars into a military defense line in Muhamalai, said an officer at the Media Center for National Security, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with policy.

He said the army retaliated with artillery fire, causing damage to the rebels.

There was no immediate comment from the rebels on the attacks.

Fighting across eastern and northeastern Sri Lanka - has left dozens of army personnel and rebels dead in recent days, with each side blaming the other for initiating the attacks. The continuing violence comes despite a planned resumption of peace talks between the government and the Tamil Tigers in Switzerland at the end of the month.

About 1,500 people have died in increasingly heavy fighting since the last round of talks in February.

Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross brought the bodies of 11 soldiers from a Tamil Tiger-held area in the east and handed them over them to army on Sunday, Samarasinghe said.

The military earlier said that 12 soldiers went missing last week when the Tigers attacked an army camp in Mankerni. The rebels accused the army of starting the offensive in a bid to grab rebel-held territory.

The rebels earlier said they had also captured another soldier alive.