Tiger rebel vows to continue attacks

While Sri Lanka's government and Tamil rebels teeter between war and peace, a conflict is raging in the island’s East, where renegade guerrillas are locked in a do-or-die battle with former comrades.

While Sri Lanka’s government and Tamil rebels teeter between war and peace, a conflict is raging in the island’s East, where renegade guerrillas are locked in a do-or-die battle with former comrades.

Blindfolded bodies are often found dumped by the road, hands tied behind the back, in the eastern ‘‘shadow war,’’ which rages alongside naval battles, ambushes and air strikes further North between government forces and mainstream guerrillas.

The renegades, who call themselves the TMVP, say they are not party to the fraying 2002 ceasefire between the mainstream Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels and the government.

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‘‘The ceasefire was between two sides—the LTTE and the government,’’ said Prathep, a senior renegade rebel on Wednesday. ‘‘To protect our own bases, we must attack the LTTE. It is not to destroy the ceasefire agreement or bring war to the country.’’

Mediators are desperate to restart a peace process between the LTTE and the government but repeated attacks on the Tigers by the ex-rebels, led by Karuna, are making matters worse.

Diplomats suspect the government is backing Karuna. But the government denies it, saying Karuna is an internal LTTE problem.

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