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Annan Condemns Sri Lanka Bombing as 'Atrocious'

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today strongly condemned the "atrocious" suicide bombing at a military installation in Sri Lanka which killed several army personnel and civilians and seriously wounded the army chief, and called on the Government and Tamil separatists to resume peace talks.

In a statement issued by his spokesman, Mr. Annan said "no cause can justify such acts of violence" and expressed his condolences to the families of the bereaved and the Government.

"The Secretary-General is disturbed by the rapidly escalating violence on the island, as seen in a vicious cycle of attacks and retaliations that appears to seriously endanger the fragile peace process," the statement added.

"He would like to again stress that a return to civil war will not resolve outstanding differences between the parties. He calls on the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to summon the political will to resume their dialogue under the facilitation of the Norwegian Government," it concluded.

Source: United Nations