Tamil Tiger guerrillas attacked a ship carrying 1200 Sri Lankan soldiers yesterday but were beaten back. The Defence Ministry claimed six rebels were killed and 40 soldiers were wounded.
About 20 explosive-laden boats with suicide cadres on board attacked the ship off Trincomalee, about 250km northeast of Colombo.
Soldiers on board fired at two of the boats, which exploded. Sri Lankan Air Force jets and helicopter gunships then forced the rebel boats to retreat.
The soldiers were on their way from Trincomalee, a major sea port, to the Jaffna Peninsula, where most of the 18-year Tamil separatist war is being fought.
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