Tigers vow war if no self-rule talk

Sri Lanka’s feared Tamil Tiger rebels threatened on Saturday to resume a two-decade war for self-rule that killed more than 64,000 people, if the government does not agree to discuss their demands soon. In a strongly worded annual address to mark the rebels’ war dead, LTTE chief V. Prabhakaran said the Tigers had reached the limit of their patience and said the government’s Marxist coalition ally was blocking chances of peace.

‘‘We urge the government to resume the peace negotiations without conditions, based on our proposal for an interim self-governing authority,’’ Prabhakaran said in the policy statement broadcast on radio. ‘‘If the government rejects our urgent appeal and adopts delaying tactics…we have no alternative other than to advance the freedom struggle of our nation,’’ he added. — Reuters