Three Sri Lanka Army soldiers were killed and four injured in a claymore mine attack Monday morning near the country's eastern town of Batticaloa, security sources said.

The attack, targeting a road clearing patrol group, took place at about 7:45 a.m. (0145 GMT) in Urani along Batticaloa- Valaichenai road, about 230 km east of Colombo.

Initial investigations revealed that the remotely triggered claymore mine was fitted to a tree, according to police.

Since the beginning of December, a spate of attacks by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) using claymore mines have resulted in deaths of over 50 army, navy and policemen.

Violence have continued unabated despite warnings by the international truce monitors. They urged both the government and the rebels to restart peace negotiations.

Source: Xinhua