Associated Press, Wed November 29, 2006 05:52 EST . COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) _ Peace-broker Norway on Wednesday denied a report that it gave a six-foot (1.8 meter) television to Sri Lanka's reclusive rebel leader, who is said to like watching Hollywood movies and copy methods for attacks and assassinations.
A statement from Norway's Foreign Ministry called the allegations carried by state-run Daily News ``misconceptions and lies.''
The paper on Monday carried an interview of a breakaway Tamil Tiger leader named Karuna, who alleged that Norway's Aid Minister Erik Solheim had given the television to rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.
Karuna, a one-time confidante of the top guerrilla leader, said Prabhakaran liked watching movies. Karuna told the interviewer that Solheim had given ``a six-foot (1.8 meter) TV screen to Prabhakaran to watch films.''
The Norwegian Foreign Ministry emphatically denied the claim.
``The ministry would again like underline that it is surprised to see that such blatant lies are being printed by the Daily News. Mr. Solheim has certainly not bought a television for Mr. Prabhakaran,'' the statement said.
The Norwegian Foreign Ministry also denied Karuna's claim that Solheim gave the rebel group money.
Solheim was instrumental in arranging a cease-fire between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebels in 2002 aimed at ending a two-decade civil war that had killed 65,000 people.
The guerrillas split in 2004 when Karuna broke away with some 6,000 fighters.
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