UN says 3,000 flee Sri Lanka war

Almost 3,000 people have fled Sri Lanka for India since the start of this year, the United Nations refugee agency says.

The BBC's Dumeetha Luthra at Mannar in the north says it has become a transit point for Tamils fleeing the conflict.

Escalating violence has left hundreds of people dead. At least eight people were reported killed on Wednesday in a spate of attacks across the north.

Our correspondent says security forces are now in an undeclared war with the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels.