The Sri Lankan Army has denied that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) chief's son, believed to have been wounded in fighting against government forces, was heading to Malaysia for medical treatment.

ltte velupillai prabakharan Velupillai Prabakaran's son, Charles Anthony, was reported to have been leading an LTTE contingent in the rebel's stronghold of Pudhukkudiyiruppu in the island's north, fighting against government forces, when he was injured on March 8.

"It is not true, these are exaggerated stories. It is not possible for him to go to such a location (Malaysia).

"He is still in the 'No-Fire Zone' seeking medical treatment. His father (Prabhakaran) is also here," army spokesperson Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara told Bernama from Colombo in a telephone interview today.

Coming here for treatment

Fleeing civilians from the war zone were believed to have revealed that Charles, 24, and another senior LTTE cadre Swarnam, who lost a leg in the battle, were being sent to Malaysia by sea for treatment.

However, the army has categorically rubbished such claims.

Quoting war victims, news reports were rife in Colombo that LTTE leaders were making preparations to send Charles and Swarnam by ship to Malaysia.

The LTTE has been staging a civil war with the Sri Lankan government for almost a quarter of a century - fighting for a separate homeland in the island's northeast.

More than 70,000 people perished on both sides in one of the longest armed conflicts in South Asia, which has wrecked the Sinhalese-majority nation, once a prospering tourist island.