LTTE accuses Sri Lankan Army of killing top operative

Ramanan was one of the highest-ranking Tiger operatives to be killed since the group entered into a truce with the government.

Tamil Tiger rebels on Monday accused the Sri Lankan military of killing their top intelligence operative in the island's eastern province.

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The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said Ramanan, their seniormost intelligence operative in the province was gunned down by an army sniper on Sunday, the Tamilnet.com reported.

"A Sri Lanka army sniper targeted the commander while he was inspecting the forward defence line positions of the Tigers in Vavunathivu, Batticaloa," it said.

Ramanan held the rank of a colonel and had been sent to the east to take over intelligence work following the unprecedented split in the group in March 2004.

Military officials denied security forces were involved in the attack, and said they suspected that the breakaway faction led by V Muralitharan, better known as Colonel Karuna, was responsible.

Ramanan is one of the highest-ranking Tamil Tiger operatives to be killed since the group entered into a truce with government forces in February 2002, Tamilnet said.