& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Troops halt advance into LTTE stronghold
COLOMBO. June 29: The Sri Lankan army, having suffered heavy losses from two counterattacks by separatists on its flanks, has halted its advance Into the rebels northern stronghold, the island newspaper said today, reports Reuter.
It said the army, which has suffered almost 300 deaths at the hands of rebels this month, has temporarily called off its operation aimed at opening a strategic highway through rebel-controlled northern Jungles.
"Following the attacks the army has temporarily called off the advance towards Puiiyankulam." the paper quoted military officers as saying.
Government troops, which launched operation "Jaya sikuru" or "sure of victory" on May 13. are poised to take complete control of the junction town of Puiiyankulam in the heart of the rebels northern stronghold in the Wanni region.
Puiiyankulam lies some 30
km (18 miles) north of the government-controlled frontline town of Vavuniya. from where nearly 20.000 troops launched the offensive in May in a bid to open a highway from Vavuniya to the Jaffna Peninsula, a further 100 km (60 miles) north.
But a Defence Ministry spokesman said the offensive had not been stalled.
"Troops are consolidating. They are dominating ahead of their defences. But tne offensive has not been stalled." the spokesman told Reuters.
'"When the time is right for them to move again, they will advance,"' he said
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) carried out two attacks within a period of two weeks on the armed forces, causing heavy losses on both sides.
The last attack, on Tuesday night, killed more than 100 soldiers and wounded nearly 190. according to military officials In the north. Some 180 rebels were also killed in the at-
tack. they said.
But the Defence Ministry said only four officers and 60 soldiers were killed and 68 were wounded. But said 150 rebels died and a large number were wounded.
Officials figures show that more than 300 government soldiers have been killed in the offensive since it was launched last month. The number of wounded is even higher.
Military spokesman Brigadier Sarath Munasinghe told a news conference on Thursday the attack would not affect the militaiy's thrust into the rebels stronghold.
He said it showed the rebels were desperate to stop the army's advance further north.
Anton Rajah, a London-based spokesman for the LHE. warned that the rebels would mount more such attacks In the coming weeks.
The LTTE are fighting for an independent homeland for minority Tamils in Sri Lanka's north and east.