Colombo  - A key official in the Eastern Province government, which was recently established after Tamil rebels were driven out of the area, was shot to death Friday on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital, police said.

Kumarasamy Nandagopan, alias Ragu - private secretary to the province's chief minster, Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan - was shot in Athurugiriya while travelling in a car. His driver also was killed.

Colombo- Two strategic coastal villages in north-western Sri Lanka, both frequently used by rebels to smuggle in military hardware from South India, were brought under government control after a fierce round of fighting, military officials said Thursday.

The two villages, known as Devil's Point and Vallaipadu, lie 360 kilometres north of Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital. They were captured Thursday. Troops were in the process of consolidating their positions, military officials said.

New Delhi - Maritime surveillance is required in the Bay of Bengal where sea lanes are being used by terrorists to smuggle arms and drugs, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa said at a regional summit in New Delhi Thursday.

Addressing a joint press briefing with the leaders of the BIMSTEC regional grouping nations, Rajapaksa said the issue was discussed at by the leaders of the member nations - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

New Delhi, Nov. 13 : Visiting Sri Lankan President Mahindra Rajapakse today said that there was no question of ordering a cease-fire against the rebel Liberation Tigers for Tamil Ealam (LTTE), and added that his government would take all necessary steps to protect Tamils in Sri Lanka.

"Tamilians are our people; we have been taking care of them and we will take care," Rajapakse said.

Rajpakse told reporters in Delhi: "Since the last twenty years, we are witnessing this ceasefire. We will not allow terrorism to continue."

Colombo  – The Sri Lankan government has rejected an offer by Tamil rebels for a ceasefire in the northern part of the country where fighting continues as troops push forward to recapture rebel-held areas, a local newspaper said Monday.

The government's Defence Affairs spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said that Tamil rebels would have to comply with the conditions set by the government to lay down arms and surrender to resume talks.

Chennai, Nov 9 : Television artists of Tamil Nadu observed hunger strike on Sunday to demonstrate solidarity with the Sri Lankan Tamils being allegedly killed by the island nation''s defence forces.

More than 500 actors and artists took part in a hunger strike in Chennai by the television and small screen Artists Association of the state.

The escalating conflict in northern Sri Lanka between government troops and Tamil Tigers has roiled Indian politics.

Many parliamentarians from Tamil Nadu have threatened to resign from the Parliament in protest against the alleged inaction on the part of the Central government to stop government offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Sri Lanka.