Fighting between Sri Lankan soldiers and Tamil Tiger rebels killed at least five guerrillas in the island's embattled north, the military said Wednesday, according to AP. Two clashes broke out Tuesday in the rebel-held Kilinochchi district, the military said in a statement. The military said it inflicted «heavy damages» on the rebels and found the bodies of three guerrillas after the battle. Later, troops destroyed eight rebel bunkers in northern Jaffna district, the statement said without giving casualty details. Meanwhile Wednesday, soldiers killed two rebels in a confrontation in Mullaitivu district, a separate statement said. Rebel officials could not be contacted for comment because communication lines to rebel territory have been severed. Government troops say they are moving closer to the rebel headquarters in Kilinochchi. Other soldiers are meanwhile trying to capture a road along the western coast that would provide government forces with a new land route to the Jaffna peninsula, the cultural capital of minority Tamils, according to the defense ministry Web site. Jaffna has been cut off from the rest of the country since 2006 when the government closed the main road to the peninsula, citing security concerns. That road cuts through rebel-held territory.
