S.Lanka says rebels killed 5 sailors in navy clash

COLOMBO, June 28 (Reuters) Tamil Tiger rebels killed five navy sailors and wounded three others during an attack on two small Sri Lankan navy vessels around 165 km north of the capital Colombo today, the military said.

Officials had earlier said there were no navy fatalities in the clash, but said the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had prevented them from getting near one badly damaged boat.

''We have recovered the bodies of five sailors. The bodies were in the sea near the damaged boat,'' said a military spokesman. He added the navy believed around 12 rebels had been killed. The Tigers say only one of their fighters died.

REUTERS SRS KP1920