Recent fighting threatens ceasefire in Sri Lanka

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (CNN) -- At least 11 Sri Lankan soldiers and nine Tamil Tiger rebels died in fighting in Sri Lanka's northern region, a military spokesman said Saturday.

Government soldiers were attempting to recapture territory held by the rebels when the Tamil Tigers launched a counterattack in the northwestern Mannar sector, south of the village of Mallawi, a source said.

Other sources put the number of soldiers killed at a much higher number.

The fighting comes despite a 10-day unilateral ceasefire announced last week by the rebels as a goodwill gesture while the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) holds a summit in the island's capital. The ceasefire is slated to end August 4.

The meeting includes top regional officials from Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives, along with their Sri Lankan counterparts.

The ceasefire statement, however, did say that if government soldiers "carry out any offensives, our movement will be forced to take defensive actions."

When it was announced, a Sri Lankan intelligence official described the ceasefire announcement as a "cunning ploy."

"We know if they (the rebels) do anything, they would earn the wrath of not only the Government of Sri Lanka but all SAARC members too," the official said. "If we accept it, they want to be in a position to say the summit meeting was held only because they offered a unilateral ceasefire."

The fighting in Sri Lanka pits government forces in a country dominated by the Sinhalese ethnic group against rebels from the Tamil minority. The rebels, formally known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), are fighting for the creation of an independent nation, citing discrimination by the Sinhalese.

The fighting is centered in the country's north. The government has blamed the Tamil Tiger rebels for carrying out a wave of attacks on buses, train stations and other public places throughout the country.

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