COLOMBO, June 5: Eight Tamil Tiger rebels escaped from a jail in eastern Batticaloa on Sunday morning, prison officials said. “One of the prisoners pointed a handgun to the head of the security guard at the main entrance. The escapees got into an auto-rickshaw and fled from the high security area of the Sri Lanka Army,” a prison source said.

The men fled to Tiger-controlled areas in the east.

Police sources say this is the third time within one year that LTTE suspects have escaped from north and eastern jails in a similar manner.

Prison authorities are meanwhile carrying out inquiries to determine if there was support by the prison staff.

The escape comes amid continued clashes between the rebels and the military.