41.   The killing Friday followed state government assurances of tight security for the thousands of Hindus expected to travel next month to the holy Amarnath cave in the Kashmir mountains.

42.   The killings followed a pre-dawn LTTE assault against a police post in the northwest Mannar region, where five constables were killed, Munasinghe said.

43.   The killing followed intensified shelling between Pakistani and Indian troops in the Kashmir region.