Fierce clashes in Lanka's North, 30 Tigers killed: Army

Colombo, Oct 16 (UNI) Sri Lankan military today claimed that at least 30 Tamil Tiger rebels were killed and several injured when the army launched pre-emptive strikes against the rebels in the Northern Wanni and Jaffna battlefronts.

''The Sri Lanka army soldiers yesterday launched several pre-emptive strikes immediately ahead of their forward defences in Wanni and Jaffna, killing over 30 terrorists,'' the Defence Ministry said in a report, adding that strikes came following series of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in these areas.

In the Wanni front, troops launched their first strike at an LTTE hideout at Mullikulam, killing at least 20 rebels and injuring 15.

''During the subsequent search, troops have found five bodies of young LTTE female cadres and two bodies of male cadres. Also, troops have seized six T-56 machine guns and one Multi Purpose Machine Gun,'' the report stated.

One soldier was killed and seven others injured as the terrorists engaged the location using artillery and heavy mortar fire, it said, adding that eight more rebels were killed in two separate attacks last evening.

There was no immediate word from the LTTE in this regard.

UNI