Cluster bombs in war zones: Lanka rejects link with govt. forces

The Sri Lankan Government has rejected that it used weapons in the former war-hit areas of the country following reports of cluster bombs being found in the region.

Responding to questions over a Guardian report, which produced for the first time pictures of the bomb casings and cluster munitions, Sri Lankan Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne denied any connection with the government forces.

"How do you know that the sites, as shown in the pictures, are in Sri Lanka? How do you say that these bombs belong to the Sri Lanka Army? What is the basis?" the Guardian quoted him as saying.

Senaratne also indicated the weapons that were discovered could have been used by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) forces opposed to the government during Sri Lanka's long-running civil war.

"How do you say whether they are from the army or the LTTE forces?" he added.

The pictures revealed by the Guardian were passed on by an ex-employee of the Halo Trust, the world's biggest de-mining organization.

Halo confirmed that it had found a total of 42 cluster munitions discovered across northern Pachchilapalli, a location of fierce fighting between LTTE forces and Lankan government at the end of the war.