COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- Sri Lankan government forces engaged in battles with Tamil Tigers Saturday and reported killing at least 26 of the rebels and wounding several more.
The Defense Ministry said that after members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam attacked security forces in the country's Mannar District, the ensuing counter-attack by federal forces killed 10 militants, the Press Trust of India reported.
Meanwhile, government troops attacked a pair of Tamil Tiger bunkers in the same district Saturday and killed eight rebels.
A military response to a rebel artillery attack, also in Mannar, left two more rebels dead and another eight wounded.
Two other attacks Saturday on Tamil Tiger bunkers in the region killed six additional rebels, the Press Trust of India said.
The recent violence left eight military troops injured.
Battles between the Sri Lankan government have escalated since the end of a 2002 ceasefire.
