Troops recover 6 LTTE bodies : Janakapura

Situation Report
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(February 23, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA)'s 59th division launched several pre emptive strikes on LTTE positions north of Janakapura on the 22nd (yesterday). Several bunkers on LTTE's de facto front line in the area have been destroyed. 10 LTTE cadres have been killed in the firefights and troops have recovered 6 bodies of slain LTTE cadres. Five T-56 weapons have also been seized by the troops.

Meanwhile several electronic and printed media reported that the LTTE leader Prabhakaran underwent leg amputation surgery due to the injuries suffered by an SLAF air strike.

Our sources contradict these reports;LTTE leader's injuries, suffered from air strike, were not serious nor life threatening.

Meanwhile, a powerful parcel bomb placed inside a private bus went off today morning at 11AM in Mount Lavinia causing injuries to 18 civilians. Many lives were saved by the alertness of a passenger who detected the bomb and the crew who managed to evacuate most of the passengers once the detection was made. The driver, while taking great personal risk, managed to drive the bus to an area with less civilian presence just minutes before the bomb went off. The bus has been completely destroyed by the blast.

The blast comes only a day after the LTTE Claimed that the fighter jets of the SLAF attacked a civilian settlement in Poonakari.

[-DefenceNet]