The warning was the strongest since the two sides signed a cease-fire five years ago and came during a meeting between Norwegian ambassador Hans Brattskar and S. P. Thamilselvan, the Tamil rebel political chief, the rebels said in an e-mailed statement.

Accusing the military of amassing weapons and fighters, Thamilselvan told Brattskar that the Tamil Tigers also were ready for combat.

``Thamilselvan said he emphasized to the ambassador that the present soft approach of the international community toward the GoSL (Sri Lankan government) is not going change its plans and will only contribute to a worsening situation leading to bloodbath in the island,'' the rebels' statement said.

The statement went on to accuse the government of making movements of personnel and equipment closer to the rebels' territory and stated that the rebels were expecting a large-scale attack against them soon.

No comment was immediately available from the Sri Lankan government, whose military in the past five months has driven rebels from many of their bases, mainly in eastern Sri Lanka.

Hours before the rebel warning, the insurgents killed three Sri Lankan soldiers in the island's north early Monday.

The rebels attacked a military camp in the northern Jaffna peninsula just after midnight, and the ensuing battle lasted for an hour, said Lt. Col. Upali Rajapakse, a senior official at the information unit of the Ministry of Defense.

The rebels didn't comment on the incident.

Escalating violence in the past year has all but destroyed a Norway-brokered 2002 cease-fire agreement. European peace monitors say the fighting has killed at least 4,000 civilians and combatants since December 2005.

The country's international donors have called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a return to peace talks.

The Tamil rebels have been fighting since 1983 to carve out a separate homeland for the country's ethnic Tamils after decades of discrimination by the majority Sinhalese-dominated government.

More than 68,000 people have been killed in the fighting. Discuss this story Published: Mon Mar 5 06:57:52 EST 2007

The rebels apparently attacked a military camp after midnight and the fighting lasted for one hour, said Lt. Col. Upali Rajapakse, a senior official at the information unit of the Ministry of Defense.

``Due to the confrontation with the terrorists (Tamil Tiger rebels), we have lost three of our men,'' he said.

Rajapakse said the attack was repulsed and the rebels withdrew with casualties. There was no immediate comment from the rebels on the incident.

The Tamil rebels have been fighting since 1983 to carve out a separate homeland for the country's ethnic Tamils after decades of discrimination by the majority Sinhalese-dominated government. Published: Mon Mar 5 03:15:56 EST 2007

The Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) was signed by Sri Lanka's Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse and US ambassador Robert Blake, the US embassy said.

"The agreement will allow the US and Sri Lanka to transfer and exchange logistics supplies, support, and re-fueling services, either in kind or at cost," a statement from the embassy said.

"Each nation's forces can support the other during contingencies, such as disaster relief or peacekeeping operations, which reduces the logistics requirement for each nation," the statement added. More... Discuss this story Published: Mon Mar 5 08:42:55 EST 2007