Sri Lanka's separatist conflict, led by the Tamil Tigers, has claimed over 60,000 lives. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said Israeli-built Kfir jets pounded the village of Arasankulam and that two civilians were killed while a third man was injured.
"Our rescue teams went there and reported that two people were killed on the spot," LTTE spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiriyan said by telephone from the rebel-held town of Kilinochchi, 330 kilometres (205 miles) north of the capital Colombo.
The military confirmed the air attacks and said they had bombed two positions inside rebel-held territory. They identified the targets as rebel mortar launch positions, a charge denied by the Tamil Tigers.
The defence ministry said three bodies were found at one location in the government-held northern district of Vavuniya on Tuesday and blamed the deaths on the rebels.
Another man was shot dead Tuesday when he disobeyed an order to stop outside a naval facility in the island's northwest,