The troops operating in the south of Puthukkudiyiruppu had progressed a further 300 meters enabling them to locate themselves just 1.5 km away from the no fire zone in Puttumatalan area, the officials added.

Military spokesman Udaya Nanayakkara said the troops are consolidating in the areas already captured. Search operations had led to the discovery of large haul of weapons More... Published: Sat Mar 28 15:45:50 EDT 2009

The civilians are trapped in a "no-fire" zone on Sri Lanka's northeastern coast as the military pushes the rebels — the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam — into an ever-smaller area.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa issued an "appeal to the LTTE to free all civilians who are held hostage by them so that the civilians can go to safe areas" controlled by the government, the president's office said in a statement.

The "no-fire" zone along a narrow strip of coast was set up to shield civilians trapped by the fighting. It is now home to tens of thousands, and their plight has raised concern around the world.

International bodies, including the United Nations, have accused the rebels of holding the civilians as human shields in a desperate bid to avoid defeat, and have also accused the government of not doing enough to protect them.

The statement from the president's office denied that, saying the military's "operations are conducted in such a manner to as to ensure that no civilians are killed or injured. That is why their advance over the past few weeks has been so slow."

It is not possible to contact the rebels for comment because communications with their stronghold have been cut. More... Published: Sat Mar 28 08:01:16 EDT 2009

Western nations are calling for a pause in the fighting to allow for the evacuation of up to 180,000 trapped people, but Sri Lanka is pushing back. In particular, the government is challenging the United Nation’s assessment of suffering among this cornered population. The government was angered following a senior UN official’s recent warning that both sides in the conflict may have committed war crimes.

Last week, the Monitor reported that UN documents attributed escalating deaths and injuries to Army shelling in a no-fire zone (see the Monitor’s story here).

On an official visit to Thailand, Sri Lankan foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama wasted no time in refuting these claims. He said that he had called in the UN’s country coordinator in Sri Lanka to ask him to retract “unauthenticated, unreliable figures” on civilian casualties. The UN had been “misled on the figures,” Mr. Bogollagama told reporters. More... Published: Sat Mar 28 02:43:19 EDT 2009