Fighter jets yesterday bombed suspected Tamil Tiger bunkers in northern Sri Lanka in a stepped up air campaign against the guerrillas, while ground battles left 22 rebels dead, the defence ministry’ said.

War planes pounded positions of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTfE) in support of ground troops advancing in rebel-held territory, the ministry said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from the latest air strikes, but the ministry said 22 rebels were killed and another 24 wounded in fresh fighting on Sunday.

Official reports show the gov-ernment has intensified air strikes against the Tigers since the weekend.

There was no comment from the Tigers about the latest fighting, which came as Sri Lankan troops were on an offensive to capture Kilinochchi, the political capital of theTigers in northern Sri Lanka.

The latest fighting raised the number of rebels killed since January to 6,417, according to government figures.

The military says 616 soldiers have died over the same period in a conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives since 1972. The rebels are fighting for an independent homeland for the Tamil minority.