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Lanka mine kills 5 soldiers, 2 aid workers(UPI Top Stories Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)An anti-personnel mine has killed five Sri Lankan soldiers and two NGO workers, just as an international peace delegation was meeting Tamil Tiger rebels. The claymore mine exploded Monday on a road on the northern Jaffna peninsula, killing five soldiers and injuring two others as they patrolled the area in a vehicle. One injured soldier later succumbed to his injuries, the Colombo Page reported. The mine also killed two civilians in another vehicle traveling in the opposite direction. The BBC identified them as Tamil humanitarian workers with an international Catholic aid agency, Caritas Human Development Center. An army spokesman blamed the Tamil Tigers for the explosion, although the rebels have denied any involvement. About 50 miles away from the blast, ambassadors from the European Union, Japan and Norway were meeting Monday with the Tiger leaders in the town of Kilinochchi. The ambassadors had come to urge the rebels to reduce violence and come to a peaceful solution with the government. The Sri Lankan government and the Tigers agreed to hold peace talks in Geneva, Switzerland, on April 19 to 21. Although the rebels agreed to reduce violence, attacks have increased in the north and east of the country. |