Sri Lankan jets bomb LTTE base: military

Fighter jets carried out the bombing inside the rebel-held Wanni region, says defence ministry.

Sri Lankan war planes bombed and destroyed a suspected Tamil Tiger rebel logistics base in the island's north on Thursday, the defence ministry said.

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Fighter jets carried out the bombing inside the rebel-held Wanni region, the ministry said. It said the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) had used the location as a base to direct heavy construction work.

"The targeted base has been used as the key logistic hub for heavy engineering and construction work by LTTE terrorists," the ministry said.

There was no immediate word from the Tigers.

The government has been conducting daily air raids in the north, and says it has killed at least 2,869 rebels in ground battles since the start of the year, compared with the loss of 172 government soldiers.

Verification of casualty claims is impossible as Colombo bars journalists and aid workers from travelling to embattled areas.

Tens of thousands of people have died since 1972 when the Tamil Tigers launched an armed struggle to carve out an independent homeland in the island's north and east for Tamils.