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Sri Lankan troops battle rebels in jungle
Associated Press,
Mon January 26, 2009 02:53 EST .
RAVI NESSMAN - Associated Press Writer - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Sri Lankan troops fought heavy battles Monday with the Tamil Tigers in the small patch of jungle that remains under rebel control, a day after government forces drove the insurgents from their last major stronghold, the military said. ``There is still a lot of work to be done, Sri Lanka's former army commander Gen. Jerry de Silva said.``It is likely they (the rebels) will resort to guerrilla tactics, both jungle and urban,'' he said, adding that the jungle canopy above much of the remaining rebel territory could make it difficult for troops to rely on air support. Human rights groups and diplomats have expressed growing concerns about the safety of hundreds of thousands of war refugees reportedly trapped inside the rebel-controlled areas. Human rights groups have accused the Tamil Tigers of preventing the civilians from fleeing the war zone, while the government has said the rebels hoped to use the civilians as human shields. Reports of civilian casualties in the area have grown in recent weeks. The Tamil Tigers have fought since 1983 to create a separate state in the north and east for minority Tamils, who have suffered decades of marginalization at the hands of successive governments controlled by the Sinhalese majority. More than 70,000 people have been killed in the violence. Rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran remains at large and the ethnic tensions that have fueled the conflict remain unresolved.
Published: Mon Jan 26 06:19:03 EST 2009
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