Fresh clashes flare in Sri Lanka

Violence has flared in Sri Lanka, with clashes between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels intensifying in the north and east of the country.

Fierce battles broke out in the Jaffna peninsula at the northern tip of the country and in the east at Batticaloa.

There were also reports of fighting in the eastern port city of Trincomalee. Sri Lanka has been wracked by fighting between rebels and government forces in recent months, with hundreds killed and made homeless.

Some of the worst fighting was reported in Jaffna, where thousands of government soldiers are stationed on the isolated peninsula, cut off by rebel territory and accessible only by sea.