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Sri Lankan rebel leader 'is dead' Sri Lankan rebel leader 'is dead'
(10 minutes later)
The leader of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Velupillai Prabhakaran, is dead, the Sri Lankan military has said.The leader of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Velupillai Prabhakaran, is dead, the Sri Lankan military has said.
The announcement on state television came shortly after the military said it had surrounded Prabhakaran in a tiny patch of jungle in the north-east.The announcement on state television came shortly after the military said it had surrounded Prabhakaran in a tiny patch of jungle in the north-east.
The head of the Sri Lankan army Lt Gen Sarath Fonseka said the military had defeated the rebels and "liberated the entire country".The head of the Sri Lankan army Lt Gen Sarath Fonseka said the military had defeated the rebels and "liberated the entire country".
The claims cannot be verified as reporters are barred from the war zone.The claims cannot be verified as reporters are barred from the war zone.
"Today we finished the work handed to us by the president to liberate the country from the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)," Gen Fonseka said in the broadcast."Today we finished the work handed to us by the president to liberate the country from the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)," Gen Fonseka said in the broadcast.
Sri Lankan forces had routed the rebels in the past few weeks, over-running their territory and bringing the 26-year war to its conclusion.Sri Lankan forces had routed the rebels in the past few weeks, over-running their territory and bringing the 26-year war to its conclusion.
The broadcast quoted military officials as saying Prabhakaran was killed along with two of his deputies.The broadcast quoted military officials as saying Prabhakaran was killed along with two of his deputies.
VELUPILLAI PRABHAKARAN Born November, 19541972: Founded Tamil New Tigers (TNT), forerunner of LTTEWanted in Sri Lanka and India Profile: Velupillai Prabhakaran Protest over UK role in Sri Lanka Tamils hunt for news of relatives Requiem for Sri Lanka's rebelsVELUPILLAI PRABHAKARAN Born November, 19541972: Founded Tamil New Tigers (TNT), forerunner of LTTEWanted in Sri Lanka and India Profile: Velupillai Prabhakaran Protest over UK role in Sri Lanka Tamils hunt for news of relatives Requiem for Sri Lanka's rebels
It said Prabhakaran, his intelligence chief Pottu Amman and Soosai, the head of the rebels' naval wing, were shot dead in an ambush in the Mullivaikal district while trying to escape the war zone in an ambulance.It said Prabhakaran, his intelligence chief Pottu Amman and Soosai, the head of the rebels' naval wing, were shot dead in an ambush in the Mullivaikal district while trying to escape the war zone in an ambulance.
Military spokesman Brig Udaya Nanayakkara confirmed Prabhakaran's death, saying 250 Tamil Tigers were also killed overnight.Military spokesman Brig Udaya Nanayakkara confirmed Prabhakaran's death, saying 250 Tamil Tigers were also killed overnight.
The government's information department also sent news of Prabhakaran's death by text message to mobile phones across the country.The government's information department also sent news of Prabhakaran's death by text message to mobile phones across the country.
In the past few days, the LTTE had been penned into a 1.5 square kilometre (0.6 sq mile) area.In the past few days, the LTTE had been penned into a 1.5 square kilometre (0.6 sq mile) area.
The Tigers had been fighting for a separate state for Tamils in the north and east of Sri Lanka since the 1970s.The Tigers had been fighting for a separate state for Tamils in the north and east of Sri Lanka since the 1970s.
More than 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict and thousands displaced.More than 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict and thousands displaced.

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