13 Tamil rebels killed

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COLOMBO, OCT 10 (AP): Separatist Tamil Tiger rebels attacked government soldiers guarding the front lines in northern Sri Lanka, setting off gunbattles that killed 12 rebels, the military said Wednesday.
A separate clash in the east killed one rebel. A group of Tamil rebels attacked military positions Tuesday morning in the village of Eluthumadduwal, along the frontier separating the government-controlled Jaffna peninsula with the rebels' mini-state in northern Sri Lanka, said an officer at the defense ministry's media center.
The ensuing battle left 10 rebels dead, the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.The soldiers did not suffer any casualties.
Hours later, army troops killed two insurgents in a separate clash on the northern front lines in Mannar district, which has become a flashpoint in the country's escalating conflict. The fighting wounded three soldiers, the officer said.
In separate fighting in the east, the body of a Tamil Tiger killed in a battle Tuesday with police commandos in the jungles in eastern Ampara district was found, he said.
There was no immediate comment from the Tamil rebels who have been fighting since 1983 to create an independent homeland for minority Tamils in the northeast.
An independent confirmation of the clashes was also not possible because journalists are restricted in the area.
Both sides often inflate the death toll of the opposing side while playing down their own.