Tuesday, December 6 2005 14:54 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Colombo: Suspected Tamil Tiger rebels set off a powerful landmine in northern Sri Lanka today (Dec 6, 2005) killing seven soldiers as rights activists warned that the island could slip back to war.

"Six soldiers and a captain were riding in a tractor-trailer near the Nallur temple in Jaffna, some 400 km from here, when they ran over a claymore mine," military officials said.

"The soldiers were on a foot patrol and after their work they were returning to base in a tractor when they were hit," spokesman brigadier Nalin Witharanage told reporters here.

The attack was identical to Sunday's blast in which seven soldiers were killed in the same area.

Army chief Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka who took office here today said his top priority would be to try and stop military losses and asserted that his force was ready to meet any LTTE threat.

He played down the two blasts, the worst military setback since the ceasefire went into effect, and said he wanted to initiate a dialogue with the Tigers to stop the killings.

"The Tigers say they have not done this, but we think they did it. If it is not them, they also have a responsibility to find out who is doing this in an area where they have a lot of control over the local population," Fonseka said.

He also said the military was prepared to beat back any offensive the Tigers may launch to retake the former Tiger stronghold of Jaffna, but said he would need more time to better equip and train his men.

"We are ready to face any situation even now. We can meet any LTTE threat," he said.

However, he said that the military lacked proper equipment and their tanks were over 20 years old. He said he wanted to modernise the army and also improve the training of troops and battle corruption within the military.

Fonseka takes chare of the Lankan Army as the London-based rights group Amnesty International warned that the situation in Sri Lanka was grave and could implode while the United States issued a statement urging both Colombo and Tigers to act with restraint.

The secretary general of London-based rights group, Irene Khan, told reporters here that both the Government and the Tigers were using human rights as a political issue to blame each other.

"It is a grave situation, volatile and waiting to implode," Khan said yesterday referring to the spike in violence in the island's embattled northern and eastern regions.