COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, WORLD NEWS: There is intense fighting on Sri Lanka's northern Jaffna peninsula. Tamil Tiger rebels have advanced to within one kilometer of Jaffna city. The rebels are firing mortars at troop positions in the city, and there are reports that hundreds of people are fleeing. CNN's Satinder Bindra is in Sri Lanka and filed this report earlier, and a reminder to our viewers, our reports from Sri Lanka are subject to government censorship.</s>SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With yet another day of heavy fighting near the town of Jaffna, casualties on both sides are beginning to mount. The army says more than 30 of its soldiers have been killed. Two hundred are wounded. Sri Lankan troops have launched air strikes and a ground offensive against Tamil Tiger rebels who have breached their defenses just east of Jaffna. In the past two days of fighting, the army says more than 70 rebels have been killed. So far there has been no confirmation by the rebels. The first army video released from the battlefront in months shows Sri Lankan troops arriving to reinforce the 35,000 soldiers already in Jaffna. But analysts say the army isn't making any headway against the rebels.</s>IQBAL ATHAS, DEFENSE ANALYST: So the troops have been fighting</s>BINDRA: With the rebels holding their ground, analysts say the army's only option may be to try to stop the Tigers from advancing further in the Jaffna peninsula. These army pictures from Jaffna, which the rebels believe is their cultural capital, show no signs of the fighting. However, the situation is still very tense. Senior army commanders have rushed to the north, where a rebel radio station has been advising the area's 500,000 residents to flee. With no let-up in the fighting, Sri Lanka continues to censor media reports. The government has now increased a defense tax to try and raise $35 million. Shoppers here are also paying 5 percent to 10 percent more for cigarettes and alcohol to fund their country's war effort. Satinder Bindra, CNN, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Another Day Of Intense Fighting In Sri Lanka's Northern Jaffna  Peninsula