Government soldiers captured a Tamil Tiger rebel-held village in Sri Lanka's embattled north Thursday, while fierce fighting elsewhere in the region killed 38 rebels and five soldiers, the military said. Fighting has escalated in recent months on this war-torn Indian Ocean island, with the military capturing a series of rebel bases and large chunks of territory, and officials reiterating a pledge to crush the guerrillas by the end of the year. The army took control of Palamodai, a village held by rebels in the Vavuniya district, after nearly one month of fighting, said military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara. Fighting continued Wednesday along front lines separating government-controlled territory and the rebels' de facto state in the north, he said.
