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'Suicide attack' on S Lanka army 'Suicide attack' on S Lanka army
(about 6 hours later)
At least six people have been killed in a suicide attack by the Tamil Tigers on an army camp in eastern Sri Lanka, officials have said. A Tamil Tiger suicide bomber has killed himself and at least seven others in an attack an army camp in eastern Sri Lanka, the military said.
A rebel drove a tractor loaded with explosives to the camp in Batticaloa district and detonated it at the gate. The bomber drove a tractor loaded with explosives to the camp in Batticaloa district and detonated it at the gate.
Two soldiers and four civilians were killed and at least nine others were injured, officials said. Three soldiers, four civilians and the bomber were killed and at least 10 others injured, officials said.
The bombing came a day after the Tamil Tigers carried out their first ever aerial attack, on a military base.The bombing came a day after the Tamil Tigers carried out their first ever aerial attack, on a military base.
Three air force personnel died and 16 people were hurt in the Tigers' raid on the base next to the international airport north of the capital, Colombo.
The international airport - which was not damaged - was closed briefly.
The Katunayake airbase and the civilian airport share the same runway.
Rebels said the Sri Lankan government carried out four air raids in the north of the island after the airport attack.Rebels said the Sri Lankan government carried out four air raids in the north of the island after the airport attack.
'Minor damage' Troops praised
A statement from the Tamil Tigers, carried by the pro-rebel Tamilnet website, claimed responsibility for the attack on the military base, which is 30km (20 miles) north of Colombo. Tuesday's bombing at the Chenkalady camp in Batticaloa district came early in the morning.
The Tigers released photos of the pilots they said took part name="story"> class="" href="#map">Plan of air base and airport class="" href="/1/hi/world/south_asia/6496381.stm"> Tamil Tigers' new tactic The government said one plane was used. The rebels said two aircraft took part and that both planes returned to rebel-held territory safely. Our alert soldiers... asked the driver to stop. When he ignored, they opened fire Brig Prasad Samarasinghe, Military spokesman Tamil Tigers' new tactic
Air force officials said no planes were hit, damage to the military facility was "minor" and that a search operation was under way. The military said troops shot the attacker as he tried to enter the base. The tractor and its explosives subsequently exploded.
The air force base houses some of the aircraft used in recent air strikes against Tiger rebel bases in the north. Three of the civilians belonged to a pro-government Tamil party, the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), which has its office next to the camp, officials said. A 12-year-old boy was also killed.
Sri Lanka's military spokesman, Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe, said it was only the alertness of the sentries on duty that prevented the bomber getting into the base and causing more casualties.
"You can't find even a piece of the trailer. If it had come into the camp, it would have been a major disaster," he told Reuters news agency.
Brig Samarasinghe blamed the Tigers.
The rebels, who have fought for decades for a separate state for Sri Lanka's Tamil minority in the north and east, have not commented on the incident.
There has been heavy fighting in eastern Sri Lanka for months.
The BBC's Roland Buerk in Colombo says government forces are trying to drive the rebels from pockets of territory they still hold.
Air raid
Meanwhile, investigations are getting under way into how the rebels managed to carry out the air raid on the fighter jet base on Monday.
The Tigers released photos of the pilots they said took part
At least one light aircraft flew undetected to the Katunayake base, which is next to the international airport and shares the same runway, dropped several bombs and returned home.
The rebels say two planes were involved. It was the first time they have attacked from the air.
Three air force personnel died and 16 people were hurt in the raid 30km (20 miles) north of Colombo, the air force said.
The international airport - which was not damaged - was closed briefly. The Sri Lanka air force said none of its jets were damaged.
Despite a ceasefire still being in place on paper, Sri Lanka has been sliding back towards civil war, with more than 4,000 people killed in the past 15 months, our correspondent says.Despite a ceasefire still being in place on paper, Sri Lanka has been sliding back towards civil war, with more than 4,000 people killed in the past 15 months, our correspondent says.
The rebels have been fighting the armed forces of the predominantly Sinhalese government for much of the past 20 years. About 65,000 people have been killed and one million displaced by the fighting over the past 20 years.
They want to establish an independent homeland for the minority Tamils in the north and east of the country, to be called Tamil Eelam.
About 65,000 people have been killed and one million displaced by the fighting.