Lanka air strikes end amid threat of civil hostilities

The military said on Thursday it would halt the air strikes —which rebels say sent thousands fleeing their homes and killed 12 civilians—so long as the insurgents stopped their attacks. There were no air strikes overnight.

Samarasinghe said roads linking government controlled territory and rebel held areas in the eastern part were reopened to civilians.

Meanwhile, the suicide bomber who was targeting Army chief was pregnant and that helped her to conceal explosives and get inside Army headquarters for a maternity check, an investigator says.

The bomber has been identified as Anoja Kugenthirasah, 21, from the government-held town of Vavuniya on the frontier of territory held by the rebels, the investigator said.