COLOMBO, Sri Lanka—A fresh wave of fighting across northern Sri Lanka killed 29 ethnic Tamil rebels and one government soldier, the military said Friday.
The new battles erupted Thursday along the front lines in the Vavuniya, Mannar, Jaffna and Welioya regions, the military said.
In the worst fighting, six Tamil Tiger rebels were killed when the army destroyed three bunkers in Vavuniya, the military said. Another army offensive against a line of rebel bunkers in Mannar killed five guerrillas, while other battles along the front lines killed 18 rebels, it said.
The government also said it seized a small section of territory in the town of Karuppukulam in Mannar in a battle that killed one soldier.
Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan was not immediately available for comment.
Both sides commonly exaggerate their enemy's casualties while underreporting their own. It was not possible to verify the details independently because the war zone is restricted to reporters.
Fighting has escalated along the northern front lines since the government withdrew from a long-ignored cease-fire in January.
The rebels have fought since 1983 to create an independent homeland for minority Tamils, who have been marginalized by successive governments controlled by the Sinhalese majority. More than 70,000 people have been killed in the violence.
