COLOMBO: Sri Lankan war planes bombed a Tamil Tiger ammunition store in the north of the island on Friday, causing heavy damage, the defence ministry said, while claiming killing five rebels elsewhere.

The ammunition cache was used by Imran-Pandiyan, an elite regiment of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the military said. “The air strikes taken were based on accurate air and ground surveillance information,” a statement said.

The military said air force pilots reported explosions following the raid but made no claim of rebel casualties. No independent confirmation of the military’s version of events was available and there was no immediate comment from the Tamil Tigers.

The military meanwhile said it shot dead five suspected Tamil Tiger rebels in the northern frontline district of Vavuniya on Thursday. The military placed its own casualties at two soldiers injured.—AFP