World IN BRIEF : SRI LANKA : 35 Muslims on Buses Reportedly Slain

Rebels stopped three buses and gunned down at least 35 Muslim passengers in eastern Sri Lanka, Defense Ministry officials in Colombo said. Defense Ministry officials said the rebels stopped the buses near the town of Kalmunai. Muslim politicians put the number of dead at 150. According to residents of Kalmunai, the killings were intended as a warning to Muslims not to help soldiers hunt for hide-outs of Tamil rebels, who are fighting for an independent state in northeastern St Lanka. Meanwhile, a Tamil politician claimed Sri Lankan soldiers massacred nearly 1,000 Tamil civilians during the last month of fighting with the rebels.