Sri Lanka rebel head 'surrounded'

The leader of the Tamil Tiger rebels, Velupillai Prabhakaran, is alive and surrounded by government troops, the Sri Lankan military has said. Prabhakaran is guarded by about 200 rebels and encircled by Sri Lankan troops in a small patch of jungle, a military spokesman said on television. Sri Lankan forces have routed the rebels in the past few weeks, bringing a 26-year war to its conclusion. The army also says it has found the body of Prabhakaran's son, Charles Anthony. Sri Lanka's army says the last Tamil Tiger (LTTE) fighters have been penned into a 1.5 square kilometre (0.6 sq mile) patch of jungle. The military spokesman said he could not predict exactly what would happen next but added: "We won't allow him [Prabhakaran] to escape." The television also showed what it said were Tamil Tiger (LTTE) ammunition dumps and heavy weapons burning after the rebels set fire to them.