Tamil Tigers launch Sri Lanka air attack

An air attack on targets outside Sri Lanka's biggest city, Colombo, took place in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers, targeted two oil installations in Muthurajawela (north of Colombo) and Kolonnawa (east of the city centre).

"As a precautionary measure, a blackout was enforced over the city and flares were fired into the air to light up the skies," the Sri Lanka tourist board explained.

It added the attacks caused no "major damage", and there were no casualties or injuries to anyone from the incident.

Flights to and from London were not affected, the tourist board said, and scheduled flights were cleared for landing and take-off within two hours of the attack.

The Foreign Office are advising holidaymakers flying to Sri Lanka to check the status of their flights to and from Bandaranike International Airport with their airline or tour operator as some airlines are reviewing their flight schedules.

Among the airlines considering revising their schedules as a result of the incident are Emirates Airlines, which may suspend flights until May 4th 2007, the tourist board reports.

For the latest Foreign Office travel advice for Sri Lanka see www.fco.gov.uk