185 killed in Sri Lanka battles

A battle raging in northern Sri Lanka between government troops and Tamil rebels has killed 185 combatants over the past six days, government officials said today.
The Sri Lankan army and Tamil Tiger rebels have exchanged artillery fire across their frontlines in Muhamalai, on the Jaffna peninsula, since Thursday, the government official said on Tuesday.

The government says that 35 soldiers and 150 rebels have been killed during the battle.
However, the rebels disputed this toll.
Tamil Tiger official Seevanatnam Puleedevan said only 12 of the group’s fighters had been killed.

Both sides are known to exaggerate each other's death tolls and journalists and other independent observers have not been allowed to enter the Muhamalai area.
Also on Tuesday, a roadside bomb exploded near the northeastern port town of Trincomalee, injuring three policemen, senior police official Nihal Samarakoon said.