Colombo: The Sri Lankan Army has said it captured an area controlled by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the northern Mannar district and killed 10 rebels.

Army statement on Monday said the troops captured an area of about 600 sq metres in eastern Mannar at around 5.30 am within an LTTE defence line.

"Ten rebels who resisted the move lost their lives in the surprise attack. At least 10 more insurgents received injuries in the skirmishes," said the statement.

The army said one soldier was killed and four injured in the battle. Intense military operations are underway in the north, with the government saying it would defeat the LTTE before the end of this year.

The military said more than 700 people have been killed in the escalating conflict since the beginning of the year.

The LTTE has been fighting for a separate homeland for minority Tamils in the north and east for more than two decades. The civil war has cost more than 70,000 lives.

Source : IANS