UNI
Colombo, Mar 15: Lankan Air Force fighter jets continued to pound the suspected hideouts of the Tamil Tiger rebels in the Thoppigala jungles for the third day today.
The ground troop advancement was also reportedly underway, aiming to flush out the rebels from the jungle pockets in the Eastern Batticaloa district.
"The Air Force jets carried out an aerial raid on identified targets at Iruppaikkulam in the LTTE-held Thoppigala jungle areas after observing an LTTE gathering this morning. We do not have the details of the damaged caused to the LTTE due to the aerial raid today,'' Military Spokesman Brig Prasad Samarasinghe told reporters here today.
Brig Samarasinghe said the military and the elite Police Commandos were carrying limited operations towards the rebel-held areas of Vavunativu in the west of Batticaloa to neutralise their long-range mortar attacks.
He claimed ten LTTE cadres, including two senior LTTE intelligence wing leaders were killed during the air strikes in Narakamulla also in Thoppigala areas yesterday and the day before, he said quoting the military intelligence sources.
Meanwhile, thousands of Tamil civilians continue to flee the rebel-held areas of Kokkaddichcholaim Aiyitiyamalai, Kdowamadu, Tharavaikkulam, Kaluvanchchikkudi, Karadiyanaaru and Thoppigala in the Batticaloa district despite fresh violence in these areas.
According the military spokesman, over 52,000 people from the rebel-held areas have already come to the government-held areas of Batticaloa during the past couple of days.
"The government is making every effort to provide the internally displaced people with immediate relief and shelter,'' Brig Samarasinghe said.
He also urged the people, especially those living in the Southern part of SriLanka to be ''extra-vigilant'', accusing the LTTE of ''desperately trying to create panic and disturbances'' outside the North and Eastern areas.
The call for public vigilance has come after the government troops claimed to have detected a parcel containing 500 grams of C4 explosives in a train coming from Vavuniya to Colombo on Tuesday.