Pottu Amman dead but body could not be identified: Lankan official

Sri Lanka is "100 per cent" sure that its forces killed LTTE intelligence chief during the last phase of army offensive against the rebels, but admitted that Pottu Amman's body could not be identifed as the troops were busy with search and destroy operation, a top official said.

"We found the body of LTTE sea tiger chief Soosai. We have identified the bodies of all the leaders except Pottu Amman. Our soldiers were on a search and destroy operation and in these circumstances, Pottu Amman's body could not be identified," Sri Lanka's powerful Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has said.

"There were so many bodies we could not identify. All the people who were there were killed and I am 100 per cent sure that Pottu Amman was also killed in the confrontation with Army," Rajapaksa told The Sunday Times.

Rajapaksa, the brother of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, said that top LTTE leaders tried to flee through land or sea, but failed as military cornered them with their fool-proof plans and killed them.

"There is no big story behind it. Tactically, the military cornered them and all the leaders were killed. Our military plans were superior and that's what happened. There should be no speculation or suspicion," he said.