Tigers say Army launches major offensive in North

Colombo, Oct 11: The Tamil Tiger rebels claimed that the Sri Lankan military has launched a three-pronged "large scale offensive" along the northern de-facto border of Muhamalai and Nagarkovil since this morning.

''From 0600 hrs this morning the Sri Lankan military is attempting to move forward into the LTTE area along the northern frontline at Muhamalai, Kilali and Nagarkovil.Intense clashes are going on at this moment,'' the LTTE peace secretariat said in a statement today.

The alleged offensive by the Sri Lankan military has come exactly a day after the Tamil Tiger rebels announced that they agreed to resume direct talks with President Mahinda Rajapaksa's coalition government on October 28 and 29 in a city in Switzerland, but warned the organization would be forced to reconsider its decision ''if military aggression continued''.

''We are ready for talks, and agreed to the venue and date,'' LTTE's Political Wing head, S P Thamilselvan said after a crucial meeting with the Norwegian Ambassador, Hans Brattskar in the rebe- held Kilinochchi yesterday.

While agreeing for the two-day talks in Switzerland, the LTTE's political wing head, who in an urgent letter to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) on Saturday complained about the military build-up in the northern front, has said that the LTTE would stick to the decision only if the military halts all its operations.

''However, if the military aggression continued, we will be forced to reconsider the decision,'' the pro-LTTE Tamilnet website has quoted Mr Thamilselvan as saying after meeting with the Norwegian envoy.

However, when contacted Military Spokesman, Brig Prasad Samarasinghe, refuted the LTTE allegation and said that the government Security Forces were "only retaliating" the LTTE attacks ''as there is a strong LTTE build-up in the Muhamalai and Nagarkovil areas''.

''The LTTE was firing volley of artillery, mortar and even RPG shells. Since yesterday we are retaliating the LTTE's intense firing. But there is no major offensive as such,'' Brig Prasad Samarasinghe told UNI over the phone.

It was only a few hours ago that top Norwegian facilitator and Norwegian Minister for International Development, Eric Solheim urged both the government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE to end the ongoing fightings in order to ''ensure that a meeting actually takes place''.

UNI