Tamil Tigers declare unilateral ceasefire

Facing imminent battlefield defeat, Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels have declared a unilateral ceasefire and called on the government to halt its offensive to spare the tens of thousands of civilians trapped by the fighting.

The government rejected the appeal and accused the rebels of playing for time as the military stands poised to rout them and end the separatist war that has plagued this Indian Ocean island nation for a quarter century.