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The Sri Lankan Navy said Tuesday it destroyed a suspected Tamil Tiger rebel arms ship in the north in the afternoon.
A Navy spokesman said that a trawler carrying arms to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels was engaged by the Navy off the coast of Talaimannar in the north at around 5 p.m. local time (1130 GMT).
A subsequent search operation deploying the naval divers had recovered a larger number of mortar bombs and ammunition from the site. There was no immediate reaction from the Tigers.
The Navy from time to time had destroyed suspected LTTE arms ships. They accuse the rebels of importing arms despite the ongoing Norwegian backed ceasefire.
The naval attack came just two days after face to face talks between the rebels and the government had failed in Geneva, Switzerland.
The talks broke down after the Tigers insisted on the opening of the main A9 highway linking the northern Jaffna peninsula with the south of the country.
The government says the closure of the highway was a move in the interest of national security and it will be opened if the Tigers gave up all violence.
Editor: Yan
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