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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Sri Lanka army 'defeats rebels' | Sri Lanka army 'defeats rebels' |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The Sri Lankan president has declared a military victory over the Tamil Tigers after 26 years of bloody civil war. | The Sri Lankan president has declared a military victory over the Tamil Tigers after 26 years of bloody civil war. |
| Speaking on a visit to Jordan, Mahinda Rajapakse said he would return home to a nation totally free from the "barbaric acts" of the rebel group. | Speaking on a visit to Jordan, Mahinda Rajapakse said he would return home to a nation totally free from the "barbaric acts" of the rebel group. |
| However, fighting is still thought to continuing in a tiny area of the north-east where the Tigers' leadership is said to be cornered. | |
| More than 70,000 people have died in the bitter war for a Tamil homeland. | More than 70,000 people have died in the bitter war for a Tamil homeland. |
| See a map of the conflict region | |
| The last weeks of the war have been marked by a growing chorus of international concern over the fate of Tamil civilians caught up in the intense fighting. | The last weeks of the war have been marked by a growing chorus of international concern over the fate of Tamil civilians caught up in the intense fighting. |
| Sri Lanka says more than 18,000 civilians have left the conflict zone in the past 48 hours. | Sri Lanka says more than 18,000 civilians have left the conflict zone in the past 48 hours. |
| However, more remain inside a very small area where the Tamil Tigers may be preparing for a fight to the death. | |
| The UN and Western governments have called on Sri Lanka to exercise restraint in its pursuit of a military victory over the Tigers. | The UN and Western governments have called on Sri Lanka to exercise restraint in its pursuit of a military victory over the Tigers. |
| British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has become the latest leader to speak out on the issue, declaring on Saturday that there would be "consequences" if Sri Lanka did not work to ensure an orderly end to the conflict. | British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has become the latest leader to speak out on the issue, declaring on Saturday that there would be "consequences" if Sri Lanka did not work to ensure an orderly end to the conflict. |
| 'Humanitarian operation' | 'Humanitarian operation' |
| Speaking in Jordan, Mr Rajapakse said: "I am proud to announce... that my government, with the total commitment of our armed forces, has in an unprecedented humanitarian operation, finally defeated the LTTE militarily," the AFP news agency reported. | Speaking in Jordan, Mr Rajapakse said: "I am proud to announce... that my government, with the total commitment of our armed forces, has in an unprecedented humanitarian operation, finally defeated the LTTE militarily," the AFP news agency reported. |
| We have restricted the LTTE to [a] one sq km-like area, so we will mop up and seize the rest of the LTTE cadres and the leadership Gotabhaya RajapakseSri Lanka defence minister | |
| But the BBC's Charles Haviland, in the capital, Colombo, says a senior government spokesman in Jordan with the president could not confirm that fighting had ended in the north-east. | |
| There are now concerns that the Tamil Tiger leadership is preparing for a last stand, our correspondent says. | There are now concerns that the Tamil Tiger leadership is preparing for a last stand, our correspondent says. |
| The Tigers' leadership has said repeatedly that they will not surrender, and are thought to be keeping thousands of civilians as human shields. | The Tigers' leadership has said repeatedly that they will not surrender, and are thought to be keeping thousands of civilians as human shields. |
| There have also been reports that the Tigers are preparing a mass suicide in the face of a military defeat. | There have also been reports that the Tigers are preparing a mass suicide in the face of a military defeat. |
| Earlier, Sri Lanka's defence minister told the BBC that the army was closing in on the remaining fighters for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eeelam (the full name for the Tamil Tigers). | |
| "We have restricted the LTTE to one square kilometre-like area, so we will mop up and seize the rest of the LTTE cadres and the leadership," Gotabhaya Rajapakse said. | |
| He said the army did not know exactly where to find rebel leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran, but expressed confidence he would be tracked down. | |
| "If he has not committed suicide then he should be there," Mr Rajapakse said. | |
| Prabhakaran began the fight for a separate state for Sri Lanka's minority Tamils in the early 1970s, progressing into a violent civil war in 1983. | |
| Tigers landlocked | |
| The capture of the Tigers' last remaining stretch of coastline earlier on Saturday was hailed as a decisive breakthrough by Sri Lanka's army. | |
| For the first time ever the rebels do not have sea access, and the army is "progressing" to clear remaining rebel-held land, Brig Udaya Nanayakkara said. | |
| The Tigers once boasted a deadly and much-feared naval strike capability, often using boats to launch lethal attacks during the long years of their guerrilla campaign. | |
| State TV showed images of explosions and plumes of smoke rising from close to the coastline, as well as images of celebrating troops in coastal areas. | |
| The army said the scenes proved that the Tigers were blowing up their own caches of ammunition, but there is no independent confirmation of that claim. | |
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