By Xinhua
Colombo : At least 63 people including 52 rebels and 11 soldiers were killed in heavy fighting between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels in northern Sri Lanka Wednesday, the military said.
The Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) said fierce fighting erupted after Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels launched assaults on government troops at the Muhamalai Defense Forward Line in the Jaffna peninsula around 5:30 a.m. local time.
At least 52 rebels were killed and over 30 injured in the battle which lasted nearly two hours, said the MCNS.
Eleven soldiers were also killed and another 41 sustained injuries in the clash, the MCNS added.
However, a pro-LTTE website said that only one LTTE member was killed in the action, adding that at least 14 troops were killed and more than 70 were wounded.
Claiming discrimination at the hands of the Sinhala majority, the LTTE has been fighting the government since the mid-1980s to establish a separate homeland for the minority Tamils in the north and east.