Colombo: Three persons were killed and more than 30 injured in a grenade attack in Sri Lanka's Eastern Trincomalee district on October 11 as authorities imposed curfew after Tamil organisations held protests against the recent killing of seven people in police firing, police sources said.

Police clamped a curfew until dawn on October 12 and called for troops to assist them as a protest called by Tamils in the ethnically diverse district led to violence, including grenade attacks in the vicinity of Trincomalee town.

Reports from Trincomalee said that miscreants hurled grenades, killing three Tamils in two incidents. This is the second round of fatalities in the last few days after seven Tamil protesters were killed in police firing from a Special Task Force (STF) camp that was under attack by civilians.

Residents said that there was considerable tension in Trincomalee between the Sinhalese and Tamil communities, but the curfew and the advent of security forces led to the violence abating as the day progressed.

Even though the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) are observing a ceasefire for several months, the Eastern Province has been in ferment, as the rebel group has repeatedly organised protests against the state and security forces.

The LTTE had mobilised the Tamil population under the banner of the 'Tamil Organisations' Federation' to call for a strike in the East on October 11.

It was a similar attempt by Tamils to enforce a general strike in Muslim towns in Batticaloa district and counter-protests by Muslims that led to violent clashes that led to over a dozen deaths three months ago.

PTI