Colombo - Heavy fighting raged between government troops and Tamil rebels in northern Sri Lanka as soldiers inched their way into rebel-controlled areas amidst mounting casualties on both sides, reports from the area said, officials and rebel sources said Thursday.

Tamil rebels claimed they killed 89 soldiers in fighting outside Kilinochchi town, 360 kilometres north of the capital, on Wednesday, but the military claimed they lost only 20 soldiers in the fighting and killed at least 27 rebels.

Though there were no immediate independent confirmation about the casualty figures given by both sides, there was confirmation of heavy fighting between the two sides some 10 to 15 kilometres outside the strategic Kilinochchi town.

The pro-Tamil rebel website Tamilnet said that fighting had taken place in two areas outside Kilinochchi and over 60 soldiers were killed in one incident and 29 more in a different incident. But only 12 bodies were recovered. Rebels claimed they captured six light machine guns and 12 T-56 assault rifles.

The Defence Ministry in a statement said that troops were engaged in pitched battles with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and troops captured the strategic Thermurukandi junction, located on the main highway from the south to the north running through the rebel-held Kilinochchi town.

The Defence Ministry said that the capture of the junction on Thursday will help to open a new escape route for civilians in rebel-held areas to move out to government-controlled areas.

Government troops are fighting to recapture rebel-held areas in the north after restricting the rebels to two of the districts in the north.

The operations to recapture rebel-held areas have lasted from mid-2006 and all areas formerly held by rebels in the east and north western parts of the country have been taken back.

The fresh fighting has displaced more than 200,000 people and except for about 300 persons, all the others remain within rebel-controlled areas. The response to a government appeal for them to come to government-held areas has been poor as in most cases the rebels have been holding the people back.

Heavy rains have made it difficult for the civilians to remain in the areas, which do not have sufficient infrastructure to accommodate them. (dpa)