Colombo, May 27 (AP): A roadside bomb and a clash between government troops and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels killed six people in eastern Sri Lanka today, the military said.

The bomb hit a civilian truck in Thirukkovil village in eastern Ampara district, killing three people, military spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe said. He blamed the blast on Tamil Tigers who have often exploded bombs targeting military vehicles.

There was no immediate comment from the rebels.

Hours earlier, navy sailors killed three suspected Tamil rebels during a ground operation in a jungle area north of the eastern port town of Trincomalee, a Lankan defence ministry official said on condition of anonymity, citing policy.

The latest violence comes as part of a worsening separatist conflict in Sri Lanka that has killed 5,000 people in the past 18 months, shattering a five-year-old cease-fire brokered by Norway.