Sri Lankan military: Clashes leave 28 rebels dead

Heavy fighting in Sri Lanka's north has left at least 28 separatist Tamil Tigers dead close to the last rebel-held town, the military said Saturday.

They were killed near Puthkkudiyirippu, where fierce battles between government troops and the rebels have been raging for several weeks, said military spokesman Udaya Nanayakkara.

"There were a total of 28 LTTE fighters killed, and there are confrontations still taking place," he said, referring to the rebels' formal name, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

The military does not give casualty figures for its troops. Independent accounts of the fighting are not possible because access to the war zone is restricted.

The army has ousted the Tamil rebels from all but one of their strongholds in an all-out offensive the government hopes will soon end the island's 25-year-old civil war.

The rebel holdouts _ along with tens of thousands of terrified civilians _ are confined to about 11 square miles (28 square kilometers) of jungle and beach on the northeastern coast.

The safety of the civilians trapped in the war zone has attracted significant international attention, with the United Nations, European Union and numerous countries voicing concern.

Nanayakkara denied a report posted on the pro-rebel TamilNet Web site that said Sri Lanka army artillery shelling had killed 46 civilians over the last three days. He called the reports "exaggerated" and said they don't "engage the no-fire zones."

The U.N. has said 2,800 civilians caught in the fighting have been killed since late January, though the government disputes that figure.

The U.N. estimates at least 150,000 civilians are trapped in the war zone. The government says the figure is closer to 50,000 to 60,000, and accuses the rebels of using them as human shields in a bid to avoid defeat. Nanayakkara said nearly 1,200 civilians crossed safely into government-controlled areas on Friday.

In the latest sign of rising international concern over the fate of the civilians, the European Commission and Australia urged the government and rebels to prevent further bloodshed and ensure civilian safety.

The LTTE has fought since 1983 for an independent state for the Tamil minority, which suffered decades of marginalization at the hands of governments dominated by the Sinhalese majority. More than 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting.