The death toll in Sri Lanka's bus bomb blast blamed on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in the North Central Province rose to 61 as government launched retaliatory air attacks on Tamil Tiger positions.

The military spokesman Prasad Samarasinghe said that 67 people had been injured in addition to the 61 dead as a powerful Claymore mine hit a civilian passenger bus around 8 a.m. local time (0230 GMT) on Thursday at Kebitigollewa, 270 km north of Colombo.

Samarasinghe said all evidence so far showed a deliberate targeting of a civilian bus by the LTTE, as no armed services personnel traveled in buses on that route.

The government has strongly condemned the attack occurred a day after the LTTE delegation returned to the island after the aborted talks in Oslo.

"The government is aware that the aim of the terrorists is to instigate a backlash in order to fulfill their evil designs," said Keheliya Rambukwella, the minister of Policy Planning and the government's defense spokesman.

The government also urged the people to be calm and support its endeavor to eradicate the menace of terrorism.

"The government appeals to all civilized people and the international community to take cognizance of such evil designs of terrorists and extend all the assistance and cooperation to the government at this crucial juncture," said the government in a statement.

However, the Tamil Tigers said in its official website that the organization had no links to the blast.

"LTTE condemns this attack on the civilian bus. Directly targeting civilians, as the Kebitigollewa claymore attack has, cannot be justified under any circumstances," the rebels said.

They blamed the military of carrying out the attack to implicate the LTTE.

"The attack in Kebitigollewa timed to occur immediately after the arrival of the LTTE delegation from Europe is a reprehensible act of murders with the sole aim of blaming the LTTE for the attack," said the LTTE.

Hours after the claymore blast, the government ordered air raids on rebel positions in the Mullativu district in the north. Also in the Eastern Province's Sampur area held by the Tigers, the government forces fired shells, defense sources said.

The LTTE also said that the Air Force "bombed the LTTE controlled Mullativu area immediately after the above Claymore attack."

Rambukwella said the LTTE's acts of terror such as the bus attack has left the government to ponder the ongoing Norwegian truce agreement.

Asked if the 2002 ceasefire should be reviewed, Rambukwella said "It needs serious consideration. It has to be re-looked at or even re-structured."

The blast occurred a day after the Tiger delegation returned to the island on Wednesday after the aborted talks in Oslo originally meant to discuss the future role of the Nordic truce monitors.

After the aborted Oslo talks, the LTTE said that it had lost faith in the government for a negotiated settlement to the bloody armed conflict and would pursue its goal of self-determination for the minority Tamils.

The increase in violence since December last year has put under serious strain the fragile truce agreement and the Norwegian brokered peace process.

Over 700 people have been killed in violence blamed on both sides since last December.

Source: Xinhua