By IANS,
Colombo : Sri Lankan troops killed 18 Tamil Tigers and captured territories held by the separatist group in the north-western Mannar district, the defence ministry said in a statement Wednesday.
“Troops in the Mannar front captured three square kilometres of the area held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Tuesday,” the statement said.
It said soldiers monitoring LTTE radio transmissions confirmed that at least 18 rebels were killed and six more injured during clashes between the two sides in Mullikandal, Minnaniranchan and Marattikannaddi areas of Mannar.
It added that four soldiers were injured in the gun battles.
Air raids were also launched on suspected LTTE positions in Oddusuddan and Andankulam Tuesday evening.
An air force spokesman said fighter jets had bombed an LTTE training camp in Oddusuddan around 5.45 p.m. while MI-24 gunship helicopters carried out attacks on an LTTE bunker line near Andankulam.
There was no immediate reaction from the rebels regarding the attacks.
Over 4,000 people have been killed since Dec 26 due to upsurge in violence in the country.