81.   The offensive is part of a carrot-and-stick campaign aimed at driving separatist fighters out of the lowlands.

82.   The offensive was limited in scope and would end shortly, Turkish Chief of Staff Gen. Ismail Hakki Karadayi said Friday.

83.   The offensive was to expanded the area around a military base in the rebel territory in the north, said Brig. Sarath Munasinghe, the military spokesman.

84.   The offensive against Lodja was the second this week.

85.   The offensive could be an attempt to try to hold onto the resource-rich northern part of the province ahead of any new negotiations on its future.

86.   The offensive is close to the area where the U.S. oil company Texaco has planned to build the gas pipeline, the rebels said.

87.   The offensive is the largest military operation since the troops captured the rebel stronghold of Jaffna city in December.

88.   The rebel offensive is the largest since the May peace agreement.

89.   The Slovaks relied largely on their backfield and theiar offensives were few and unproductive.

90.   The security official denied that foreigners seen in uniform alongside Zairian soldiers in city of Kisangani, from where the offensive is being staged, are mercenaries.