Tamil Tigers suffer losses

Tamil Tiger rebels in Sri Lanka say they have lost more than 30 fighters during the latest government offensive in the north.

The rebel Voice of Tigers Radio reported that 32 Tamil Tigers were killed while repulsing a government attack in Nagarkovil, in the northern Jaffna peninsula.

Another three were killed when a nearby base came under fire.

The fighting followed a month-long lull, after government forces checked a rebel advance in the peninsula.

The rebel announcement confirmed earlier statements put out by the Sri Lankan army, after they launched an offensive earlier this week.

The army said they had lost two soldiers in the attack.

The rebel radio station said many more soldiers had been killed but did not give any figures.

Suicide bombers have carried out a series of killings

Details from the combat zone are hard to come by because no journalist is allowed to visit the front.

In April, the Tamil Tigers captured the strategic Elephant Pass military base, an isthmus which links the Jaffna peninsula to the mainland.

After several weeks of fighting - in which the Tigers overran several army positions - the advance was checked with the help of newly acquired weapons, including warplanes and multi-barrel rocket launchers.

'Black Tigers'

Meanwhile, the rebels commemorated Black Tigers' Day - held on the anniversary of the first ever Tamil Tiger suicide bomb attack, 13 years ago.

High-profile killings

1991
Rajiv Gandhi

1992
Naval commander Clancy Fernando

1993
President R Premadasa

1999
Tamil MP Neelan Thiruchelvan

2000
Senior minister CV Gooneratne

Black Tiger is the name given to the rebels' elite suicide squad of men and women who, over the years, have carried out a series of high profile assassinations and bombings.

Shops in rebel-held areas in the north of the country were reported to have closed as religious ceremonies and public rallies were held to honour the 188 Black Tigers who have died.

The Voice of Tigers said 41 suicide bombers were deployed in the past year alone.

In December, President Chandrika Kumaratunga narrowly survived an assassination attempt, when a suicide bomber attacked her campaign rally.

In the first Black Tiger attack in 1987, 39 soldiers were killed when a truck laden with explosives was driven into a government army camp.