COLOMBO, Feb 26: Suspected Tamil Tiger militants shot dead two policemen in northern Sri Lanka on Monday, officials said, as government troops consolidated in an area captured from the rebels elsewhere.

Gunmen from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) killed the constables, who were on a routine patrol in Chettikulam in the district of Vavuniya, on Sunday evening, a local police official said.

The attack came as troops in the island's northeastern district of Trincomalee consolidated in an area captured from the LTTE in the past week.

Troops backed by artillery and multi-barrel rocket launchers took four rebel bases following an offensive launched on Thursday, defence ministry officials said.

The Tigers said thousands of Tamil civilians living in the area, afraid of being caught in crossfire between rebels and the military, had fled in droves.—AFP