Sri Lanka army 'begins new push'

Sri Lankan government soldiers have begun a new drive to push Tamil Tiger rebels out of the north-western Mannar district, a military spokesman says.

"This is a humanitarian mission to liberate some 6,000 people being held in the area," Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe said.

There was no immediate word from the Tamil Tigers.

Fighting has risen over the past year, with thousands of people killed. A 2002 truce exists now only on paper.

Government forces recaptured the last rebel base in the east of the island in July, but the Tigers still control large parts of the north.

The rebels want independence for the minority Tamil community in the north and east, who they say are discriminated against by majority Sinhalese.