Sri Lanka’s ceasefire monitors expressed deep concern that civilian casualties in the country's civil war have returned to the level set before a truce was signed five years ago. The Nordic ceasefire monitoring team said 49 civilians had been killed and 60 injured in violence from November 25 to 28, referring to two bomb attacks in the capital and aerial and ground attacks in rebel-held areas.

The Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in a statement on Sunday said that it was alarmed about the situation that closely resembles a level of violence associated with the period prior to the signing of the cease-fire agreement in 2002.

The Norwegian-brokered cease-fire reduced the intensity of fighting in the island country, but violence surged in December 2005 and has killed more than 5,000 people since then. More than 70,000 people have died in the conflict.

On Saturday, government military and Tamil Tigers exchanged small arms and mortar fire in the village of Periya Pandivirichchan in Vavuniya district, an officer at the Defense Ministry's media center said Sunday.

In nearby Mannar district, soldiers stationed in the village of Adampan came under heavy rebel mortar attack Saturday evening, leaving two soldiers dead and six others wounded, the officer added.

He further said the Tamil Tigers detonated a roadside bomb targeting an army foot patrol in Jaffna, killing one soldier and wounding another.

It is widely believed that Sri Lankan military often exaggerates the casualty number of Tamil Tigers but their claims cannot be verified with the LTTE because access to the area of LTTE leaders is restricted.

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