COLOMBO, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The military in Sri Lanka said Thursday that 27 rebels were killed in separate clashes between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels in the north on Wednesday.

    Officials from the Media Center for National Security said 20 LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) members were killed in three different places in the Vavuniya district.

    In the northeastern Welioya area, four rebels were killed and 40 were injured on Wednesday in several battles.

    Officials also said three LTTE rebels were killed during confrontations with Army troops in the Mannar district.

    However, there was no independent verification to the government 's claims.

    Sri Lanka's troops are currently engaging the rebels in the Northern Province after they claimed in July last year that the entire Eastern Province had been free of LTTE rebels.

    The LTTE has been fighting the troops since the mid-1980s to carve out a separate homeland for the Tamil minority in the north and east, resulting in the death of more than 70,000 people.