Sri Lanka's military says air force jets have bombed a major Tamil rebel naval base in the northeast of the country, setting it on fire.
Air force spokesman Captain Ajantha Silva says the base is in Mullaithivu district. He says Sri Lankan warplanes hit a fuel storage tank inside the base Wednesday, which contributed to the fire.
The rebels made no immediate comment on the attack. Earlier, the rebels said Sri Lankan fighter jets raided Mullaithivu on Tuesday, wounding four civilians.
Sri Lanka's defense ministry says government troops killed four Tamil rebels Tuesday in separate battles in the northern region of Jaffna.
Fighting between Sri Lankan forces and the rebels has intensified in recent days.
The military also says it killed 23 rebels Monday in the eastern district of Batticaloa. Also Monday, a bomb blast on a bus in neighboring Ampara district killed 16 people and wounded 25 others.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
