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Violence continues after Colombo ends battered ceasefire

Fighting between government troops and Tamil Tigers continued in northern Sri Lanka on Thursday after Colombo announced it was pulling out of a battered ceasefire agreement with the rebels.

At least six Tiger rebels and a government soldier were killed in the latest clashes along the de facto border of the mini-state run by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the defense ministry said.

For their part, the Tigers said they beat back a military offensive into their territory and claimed they killed 10 government soldiers and wounded 15 more. The rebels said in a statement that they did not suffer any losses.

Both sides are known to claim heavy losses for their adversaries and there is no independent verification.

In Colombo, the already tight security was further strengthened one day after suspected LTTE rebels set off a roadside bomb targeting an army bus that killed five and wounded 28.

Two government soldiers were also killed and three wounded in another mine attack in the north-central part of the island on Thursday, police said.

An opposition Tamil lawmaker who was gunned down on New Year's Day at a Hindu temple was cremated in Colombo on Thursday amid heavy security and protests by human rights groups, which hold the government responsible for the slaying.

The government has denied involvement.

On Wednesday night, Sri Lanka announced it was formally pulling out of the Norwegian-brokered 2002 ceasefire agreement, after months of escalating violence and with authorities believing they now have the upper hand in the decades-old conflict.

The government on Thursday said it had given the mandatory two weeks' notice to Norway, which means it will quit the truce from Jan. 16.

It said that the Norwegian-led Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission (SLMM), which has monitored the truce, would also be dissolved.

Government spokesman and media minister Anura Yapa said the government viewed the 2002 truce agreement as a "flawed document."

"The government does not want to be a party to a non-functioning ceasefire agreement," Yapa told reporters. "But it does not imply that the government has shut the door for negotiations."
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