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Sri Lanka blast kills 5 soldiersFrom Journalist Iqbal Athas YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSCOLOMBO, Sri Lanka (CNN) -- At least five Sri Lankan soldiers were killed and seven others were wounded Monday when suspected Tamil Tiger rebels detonated an improvised explosive device, military officials said. According to the military, the attack took place around 8:30 a.m. (3 a.m. GMT) about a mile (1.6 kilometers) outside the northern village of Vavuniya. The explosives were concealed in a rickshaw and exploded as military vehicles carrying commandos passed. It was the second suspected rebel attack in three days. On Saturday, four soldiers died and 12 more were wounded when a Claymore anti-personnel mine exploded near the same town. The attacks near Vavuniya followed an announcement by rebel leaders that they were pulling out of talks with the government, claiming it broke a promise it made in February to disband paramilitary groups. The rebels accuse paramilitaries of acting with Sri Lanka security forces to carry out attacks on rebel members and supporters. There was no immediate response from rebels to the attacks. Peace talks, already delayed once, were to be held later this month in Geneva, Switzerland. Although the rebels backed out of the talks, they contend they are still committed to the peace process. The Tigers began fighting in 1983 to create a separate state for Sri Lanka's 3.2 million Tamils, alleging discrimination by the country's 14 million Sinhalese. More than 65,000 people on both sides have been killed Norway brokered a cease-fire agreement in November 2002 between the rebels and the government. The pact has been threatened by the surge in violence this week. Last Tuesday, rebels exploded a Claymore mine near the northeast port city of Trincomalee, killing 12 sailors in the Sri Lanka navy and wounding eight others. 
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