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COLOMBO : Intense fighting across Sri Lanka's embattled northern district have left at least 39 rebels and soldiers dead, the military said Saturday, ahead of a planned visit by a Japanese peace envoy.
Japan, the island's biggest aid donor, has voiced deep concern about the Colombo government's decision last week to end its 2002 truce with Tamil Tiger rebels, saying it fears the move "would not only further stall the peace process but also worsen the conflict."
The Japanese special peace envoy Yasushi Akashi was due to arrive in Sri Lanka on Sunday for three days of talks with President Mahinda Rajapakse and other government officials.
"He will discuss with the government the current situation of the peace process and its future," the Japanese embassy here said in a statement.
His visit comes ahead of an escalation by security forces of attacks along rebel-held areas of Mannar and Muhamalai in Jaffna.
Some 38 guerrillas died and one soldier was killed in the region in 24 hours of fighting that ended early Saturday, the military said.
"Terrorists have suffered a heavy beating as security forces continue their thrust into the LTTE- (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) dominated Wanni region (rebel-held areas)" the defence ministry said.
The soldier died when the rebels attacked an army post in Vavuniya, the military said.
There was no comment on the military's casualty claims by the rebels, who are fighting for an independent Tamil nation in the majority Sinhalese island.
Fighting in the area has been rising with government forces claiming they now have the upper hand in the decades-old war.
The latest death toll pushed rebel losses so far this month to 231, according to military figures. Nine troop have been reported killed in the same period, the military says.
Sharply differing casualty tolls reported by the military and rebels cannot be verified independently as access to the embattled regions is denied to human rights groups and journalists.
- AFP
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