Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels said today they will not extend a four-month-old ceasefire set to expire at midnight on April 24th, and accused the government of exploiting their gesture to its own advantage.
"We are compelled to make this painful decision as a consequence of the hardline, intransigent attitude of the Sri Lankan government, which has not only refused to reciprocate positively to our peace gesture but intensified land, sea and air attacks causing heavy casualties to our side," the rebels said in a statement.
The rebel LTTE, fighting for a separate Tamil homeland in the country's north and east, declared a unilateral ceasefire last Christmas Eve to help push forward a Norwegian-brokered peace initiative.
The two sides have been moving closer to talks since then but have accused each other of not being sincere about wanting negotiations.