COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Military leaders in Sri Lanka said Monday they had retaken control of a key northeastern town from Tamil Tigers seeking independence.
The town of Sampur had been used as a rebel base in recent weeks to launch attacks on the port of Trincomalee, but defense spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told reporters government soldiers were "in total control" of the area after several days of skirmishes.
"Troops are now engaged in clearing operations," he said. "The only resistance we encountered was mines and booby-trapped devices."
However, a senior Tamil told the BBC the group had not fled.
"We are still fighting in the Sampur area," the rebels' political leader in the Trincomalee area said.
The past month has seen the worst violence since a truce was struck four years ago, and the Tigers have called on international truce monitors to declare the cease-fire now officially over. However, the monitors say only one side or the other can declare the deal dead.
