The New Nation - Internet Edition

AF, Colombo

Sri Lanka said it killed five suspected Tamil Tiger rebels in overnight clashes, while the rebels accused the government of bombing a civilian settlement in the north.

The Sri Lankan navy fired early Thursday at a cluster of Tamil Tiger boats gathered off the northwest coast. They recovered an abandoned rebel boat with four bodies and three survivors, the defence ministry said in a statement.

Separately, security forces also shot dead one Tamil Tiger rebel in the northeast on Wednesday, the military said.

No independent confirmation of the claims was immediately available, and there was no comment from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Meanwhile, the pro-rebel Tamilnet.com accused Sri Lanka warplanes of bombing a civilian settlement in a rebel-held area in the north on Wednesday. "Eight bombs, dropped in two sorties, fell close to civilian settlements and explodedt. No one was hurt as the bombs missed the houses," the website said. The defence ministry was not immediately available for comment.

The Tamil Tigers are fighting for autonomy in the island's north and east, and tens of thousands have been killed since the ethnic conflict began in 1972.

Violence has surged on the island since a Norwegian-arranged truce began to fall apart in December 2005.