UN chief warns of 'bloodbath'

A UNITED NATIONS human rights expert warned of a "bloodbath" in Sri Lanka unless government and Tamil Tiger forces stop fighting long enough to let civilians flee.

Walter Kaelin said 100,000 civilians are trapped in a "no-fire" zone on the north-east coast where the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, fighting for a separate state for ethnic Tamils, have retreated.

Mr Kaelin, who represents UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on the rights of internally displaced persons, said: "If the army try to go into there, if the LTTE would not be ready to let these civilians go, we'll end up with a bloodbath.

He urged both sides "to allow civilians to leave" and allow aid workers to "provide life-saving relief to the remaining population."