By DPA
Colombo : Government troops shelled rebel-controlled areas in northern Sri Lanka overnight after coming under heavy artillery fire that killed at least one soldier and injured eight others, military sources said Sunday.
Tamil rebels had initially pounded the forward defence lines and a military base in Pampaimadu, 260 km north of the capital Saturday night, military officers based in the nearby town of Vavuniya said.
The pro-rebel website called Puthinam.com claimed the insurgents had seized some of the weapons at the army camp, but the military denied the claim.
A military statement said troops caused heavy damage and casualties to the rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
The statement confirmed that one soldier was killed and eight were injured.
Government troops have been trying to enter rebel-controlled areas in Vavuniya and adjoining Mannar district for several weeks but the rebel resistance has held, military sources said.
Fighting in the northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka has escalated during the past 18 months, leaving behind more than 4,200 dead and no immediate signs of a return to peace talks.
A Norwegian backed ceasefire exists on paper, but both the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government have conceded it is non-operational and blame each other for the failure to honour the truce signed in February 2002.