By Ranga Sirilal COLOMBO, Oct 2 (Reuters) - A U.N. convoy carrying food for 200,000 people trapped by fighting entered Sri Lanka's war zone on Thursday, and the air force said it bombed the headquarters of the Tamil Tiger rebels. The strike in Kilinochchi town, 330 km (200 miles) north of the capital Colombo, against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) separatists came as the military said its troops had closed to within 3.5 km of the rebel's de facto capital. "Jets engaged the LTTE's main headquarters in Kilinochchi," air force spokesman Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara said. The rebels had no immediate comment but the pro-rebel www.tamilnet.com web site said the air force had bombed the LTTE's political office and its Peace Secretariat, killing one civilian and wounding two others. "The SLAF bombers disappeared from the sky as they came under LTTE anti-aircraft fire. However, the buildings have sustained heavy damage," TamilNet said. Relentless daily air strikes are accompanying a ground push into Kilinochchi and other rebel-controlled areas across the front that spans the north of the Indian Ocean island country. Fighting on Wednesday killed at least 35 Tamil Tigers and wounded 42, while 10 soldiers were wounded, the military said. A U.N. convoy of 51 vehicles carrying 800 metric tonnes of food aid crossed the Omanthai checkpoint, the north of which is LTTE-held territory, on Thursday and was due to deliver food to four areas east of Kilinochchi where most of the refugees are. It originally had 60 trucks, but the number was reduced after the military had found explosives and other contraband inside nine of the vehicles, the U.N. said. The U.N. said it "condemned the attempt by persons unknown to disrupt the aid effort" by placing the illegal cargo on trucks provided by the government. Sri Lanka's government and military routinely accuse aid groups of assisting the rebels, which the humanitarian community denies. The government last month ordered nearly all aid agencies out of the war zone last, saying it could not guarantee their safety. But diplomats pressed the government to allow the food in, saying too many people were at risk. (Writing by Bryson Hull; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)
Hari Dabnat (C), who was injured in last night's bomb blast at a market, rests on a hospital floor in the northeastern Indian city of Agartala, October 2, 2008. At least ...
