Colombo - Heavy fighting raged in northern Sri Lanka as Tamil Tiger rebels mounted attacks against government positions, leaving at least 56 dead, according to government sources. The rebels tried to breach military lines on Saturday afternoon and fighting raged until evening, the government's Special Media Information Centre (SMIC) said. "The attack was totally repulsed by security forces causing heavy damages to the attacking LTTE on Saturday," the SMIC said. "Over 50 terrorists were killed and most of them were teenage cadres."
The statement added that four government soldiers were killed and 41 wounded. The Tamil Tigers fired rocket-propelled grenades and sank a navy patrol boat in the north-west, killing two sailors, officials said, bringing the death toll to 56 over 24 hours.