UPDATE 07:45 The BBC reports the Sri Lankan government as saying bodies of Tamil Tiger leaders have been found as “brushing up” operations continue. The country’s Tamil Tigers have accepted defeat after 25 years of fighting, with their head of international relations saying on their web site Sunday 16 May that the “bitter end” had been reached. Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse told a group of G11 developing countries leaders meeting in Jordan Sunday that he is “proud” to have declared victory over the Tamil Tigers Friday 16 May, after cutting off rebel access to the sea. About 50,000 civilians fled the fighting in recent days, 36,000 on Saturday alone, reports the BBC, quoting army sources. The government had announced previously that no more than 20,000 civilians remained in the area, although 16 May the pro-Tamil tamilnet.com reported that fighting, including heavy artillery, continues in the area and that thousands of wounded civilians remain trapped. Al Jazeera, Christian Science Monitor

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