Tigers continue to press Jaffna SLA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 November 1997, 23:59 GMT]
The Liberation Tigers attacked the Sri Lankan army at Vathiri, in Jaffna this evening at 6.30. Initial reports from Jaffna say that 4 Sri Lankan troops were wounded in the fighting.

The fire-fight lasted for 30 minutes, said sources in Jaffna. It is not known if there were any casualities on the LTTE side.

Meanwhile, in Mandaitheevu in Jaffna, a Sri Lankan soldier was killed in an incident that took place during a training exercise today.

An SLA sergent is reported to have given himself up later in the evening. It is not yet clear whether the sergent killed his fellow soldier.

Recently there have been several incidents in which Sri Lankan troops based in Jaffna have been killed in quarrels amongst themsleves.

The SLA's Jaffna garrison does not have a land route to the south, and rely on naval and aerial transport, which is in very short supply.