Sri Lankan fighter jets yesterday bombed and destroyed a satellite communications center run by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in their northern stronghold, an air force spokesman said. The rebels said the air raid killed three civilians.
"Air force jets bombed an LTTE satellite communications and coordinating center in [the] Dharampuram area northeast of Kilinochchi on Sunday morning," said a spokesman at the Media Center for National Security, adding that details of casualties were not immediately available.
The center, located in a village near the rebels' de facto capital of Kilinochchi, was used to communicate and coordinate with rebels agents overseas, said air force spokesman Group Captain Ajantha Silva.
He said it was unclear if there were any casualties.
The rebels said in a statement that the air force had bombed a civilian area in Kilinochchi, killing three people and wounding seven.
The conflicting claims could not be independently verified.
The military said separately that ground fighting on Saturday in Vavuniya and Mannar in the north killed seven Tamil Tiger rebels, while a mine blast in Mannar killed a soldier and a rebel Claymore fragmentation mine killed two police personnel in the eastern district of Batticaloa.
The military also said fighting on Friday killed 14 rebels and left three soldiers wounded.
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