COLOMBO (AFP) -- At least 10 Tamil Tiger rebels have been killed in three separate clashes with security forces in northern Sri Lanka, the Defense Ministry said Monday.

Six members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) were killed in an exchange of fire in the coastal district of Mannar of Sunday, the ministry said in a statement. It did not say if its troops suffered any casualties.
In another incident in the same area, three rebels were shot dead.
Another was shot dead elsewhere along the de facto border separating the rebel-held area from the rest of the island, the ministry said.
There was no immediate word from the LTTE, which is fighting for an independent homeland for minority Tamils on the majority Sinhalese tropical island.
Tens of thousands have died since the separatist campaign erupted in 1972.