Blast Kills Another 4 in Sri Lanka Violence

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka —  A truck laden with explosives blew up Saturday during a search by security forces in the northern city of Jaffna, and at least four people were reported killed, police said.

Police reported that the truck, carrying five people, was heading toward the Jaffna fort, headquarters of the army and police, when it was stopped by security forces checking for Tamil separatist guerrillas. The vehicle exploded while being examined. It was not immediately clear who the victims were.

Saturday’s explosion followed four days of violence in which more than 220 people were killed. In the bloodiest incident, Tamil guerrillas killed 148 civilians Tuesday in and around Anuradhapura, a Buddhist holy city about 140 miles north of Colombo.

Tamil militants said the slaughter in Anuradhapura was in retaliation for a reported army massacre.

Tamil guerrillas are fighting for an independent state in the north and east of this island nation off the southern tip of India. Tamils, who make up about 18% of Sri Lanka’s 15 million people, contend that the Sinhalese-led government discriminates against them.

President Junius R. Jawewardene said that Sri Lanka is training more military men and buying more arms to fight the guerrillas. The government has taken steps during the past few months “to train as many members of the security services as we need and to obtain such arms that are necessary to equip them,” he said.

National Security Minister Lalith Athulathmudali said in an interview that Sri Lanka intends to create a civil armed force as part of emergency measures against terrorist attacks.