STF’s not-so-friendly fire kills 3 troops

Special Task Force (STF) personnel yesterday shot dead at least two soldiers and a civilian, in a case of mistaken identity, during a search in Pottuvil, police said.

The STF commandos opened fire at a group of men they believed were members of the LTTE, who turned out to be troops on a similar mission in Ampara District, a police official said.

Death by ‘friendly fire’ has been a rare occurrence in Sri Lanka’s conflict, with yesterday’s incident being one of the very few r eported cases. (AFP)