35 rebels killed in Sri Lanka fighting

COLOMBO, May 9 (Xinhua) -- At least 35 rebels were killed Friday as the advancing troops took control of what appeared to be the last rebel defensive earth bund in the island's northeastern battle zone.

The Army's 58 division had completely cleared the Karyamullvaikkal area in the Mullaithivu district, defense officials said Saturday. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels are now limited to an area of just 3 sq kms.

Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, the military spokesman, said that troops would continue to carry out operations outside the newly demarcated no fire zone, a 2-km-long, 1.5-km-wide coastal strip covering the area south of Karyamullivaikkal and Velamullivaikkal.

"The troops will continue to target LTTE in order to free civilians from LTTE clutches", Nanayakkara said.

The last bits of fighting has left a massive civilian population in internally displace camps.

Some 200,000 are already in government welfare camps in the northern districts of Jaffna and Vavuniya.

Some 50,000 are still believed to be trapped in the now shrunk no fire zone where the LTTE rebels are mingling with the civilian population.

Sri Lanka's over 3 decade old conflict has cost over 70,000 lives during the LTTE's quest to set up a separate homeland for the minority Tamils seeking political independence from the Sinhala majority. link...