Fresh fighting claims 66 in Sri Lanka

At least 61 Tamil Tiger rebels and five government troops were killed in fresh fighting across Sri Lanka's embattled north, the defence ministry said on Friday.
Heavy fighting along the de facto border with territory held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) saw fierce clashes on Wednesday and Thursday, leaving a total of 66 combatants killed, the ministry said.
It said security forces had captured key locations from the Tigers in the coastal district of Mannar over the past two days.
A pro-rebel Tamil MP and his driver were killed in a bomb attack inside rebel-held territory on Thursday, officials said. The rebels accused the security forces of carrying out the attack.
So far this year, the defence ministry has reported that security forces have killed at least 1,901 rebels for the loss of 112 government soldiers.
The government numbers cannot be independently confirmed as Colombo bars journalists and rights groups from embattled areas.
Three Sri Lankan MPs have also been killed this year, including the lawmaker killed Thursday.
The latest violence came as the island's government, which claims to be gaining ground in intensifying combat with the rebels, was accused this week of being behind hundreds of "disappearances."
The report from New York-based Human Rights Watch -- entitled "Recurring Nightmare: State Responsibility for 'Disappearances' and Abductions in Sri Lanka" -- also added to calls for tough United Nations monitoring.
Sri Lanka has in the past accused diplomats raising concerns over human rights of being "terrorists" and supporters of the Tigers, who are waging a decades-old battle for an independent homeland for the island's Tamils.