Lanka teen escapes Tamil rebel camp

A 15-year-old Tamil girl who claims she was abducted by separatist rebels and forced to undergo guerrilla training has escaped a rebel camp in eastern Sri Lanka, the military and police said yesterday.

The girl, who has not been named, told police that two women from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels snatched her from her home in eastern Batticaloa district on December 18, and took her to Thoppigala, a jungle training camp in the east, military spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe said.

Six other girls were also abducted on the same day and forcibly taken for weapons training, Samarasinghe said, quoting the girl.

She escaped early on Tuesday, found her way through the jungle and surrendered to police on Thursday, Samarasinghe said.