Sri Lanka to study US treatment of suspected Islamic militants

Last Updated: Sun, 27 Sep 2009 18:00:00 +1000

The Sri Lankan government says it would study the United States' treatment of suspected Islamic militants to learn how to deal with thousands of alleged former Tamil Tiger rebels.

Sri Lanka's attorney general Mohan Peiris is set to arrive in Washington on Monday for talks with his US counterpart and with officials in the US defence establishment.

Sri Lankan officials estimate 15 thousand former rebels are detained in camps alongside hundreds of thousands of war-displaced civilians.

The Tamil Tigers, who fought for a separate homeland were defeated by Sri Lankan troops in May.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan troops opened fire to prevent dozens of war-displaced civilians from escaping a refugee camp where they've been detained in the island's north.

The Sri Lankan military says inmates at the Manik farm camp pelted stones at soldiers and tried to break free on Saturday night.

It says the army fired in self-defence.

Local police said at least three people suffered gunshot injuries.