S Lanka air force bombs area near rebel stronghold

COLOMBO, May 11 (Reuters) Sri Lankan air force planes dropped bombs on Tamil Tiger territory near their northern stronghold of Kilinochchi today, but the rebels said the town itself -- their headquarters -- had not been hit.

''The Air Force has bombed our territory, but nothing has fallen here,'' rebel media coordinator Daya Master told Reuters from Kilinochchi. ''We have no word on causalties yet.'' The bombing raid was launched after the Tigers' sea arm attacked a troop transporter ship carrying hundreds of servicemen off the island's northern tip and sank two navy fast attack boats. It is the most serious military confrontation since a 2002 truce halted two decades of civil war.

REUTERS OM KN2139