Continued violence in Sri Lanka

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or the Tamil Tigers) are suspected to have carried out a suicide attack on the tourist area of Galle in Sri Lanka.

Two tiger boats sailed into the city's harbour, hiding between fishing boats, before exploding and destroying a number of ships. Reuters reports that one sailor has died and 11 have been injured.

News of the attack comes after Monday's (October 16th) bombing of a vehicle convoy near the north-eastern town of Habaran, where over 60 people were killed.

Bloody destruction on this scale means that the conflict between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan government has now claimed 700 lives this year alone.

The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission released a statement condemning the latest round of violence.

"This is not only the bloodiest attack on civilians since the cease fire agreement was signed in February 2002, but yet another major setback in the peace process in Sri Lanka," the statement read.

The Foreign Office is currently advising against all travel to the north or east of the country. The risk of terrorism has been significantly heightened with this attack on a tourist centre.

"If you are in the north or east, you should leave at the first available opportunity," officials noted.

"There is a high threat from terrorism in Sri Lanka and therefore an increasing risk of British nationals and other foreigners becoming caught up in attacks."

The Galle area suffered significant destruction during the Tsunami of 2004 and this latest setback will cause concern among Sri Lankan tourist figures.