Blast in van near Sri Lankan capital wounds two

Colombo, Dec 29: Two people were wounded in a blast in a van on the outskirts of the Sri Lankan capital today, the military said.

''There was a van parked there, there was an explosion, we are investigating what actually happened,'' Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe told Reuters.

The incident took place in Wattala, 10 km north of Colombo, he said. The van driver was among the two injured.

Suicide bombings, mine attacks and clashes have increased across Sri Lanka as fighting between the military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) intensifies in the north and east of the island.

More than 3,000 have died this year despite a 2002 ceasefire that international monitors say now exists only on paper.

Reuters

Related Stories

News In Focus: Sri Lanka Crisis