COLOMBO: The LTTE has led the way in "innovations for terrorism" in other countries too, according to the annual assessment of terrorism worldwide submitted to the U.S. Congress.

"Many LTTE innovations, such as explosive belts, vests, and bras, the use of female suicide bombers, and waterborne suicide attacks against ships, have been copied by other terrorist groups," U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said in the 2006-Country Reports of Terrorism.

In its South and Central Asian section, the report said while the Maoists in Nepal signed a peace agreement the LTTE continued with its terrorist attacks.

"In Nepal and Sri Lanka, terrorism carried out by the Maoists and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) posed a severe challenge to those Governments."

The report said the LTTE raised money from the Tamil diaspora in North America, Europe and Australia and by imposing "taxes" on businesses in the areas under its control.

It used weapons either purchased with the money on the international black market or captured from the army.

The report said the LTTE conducted a campaign of targeted assassinations against political and military opponents.

"The Karuna faction, a dissident faction of the LTTE, conducted its own assassination campaign against the LTTE and pro-LTTE civilians in the east," the report noted.

It said the Sri Lankan cooperation with the FBI had resulted in the arrests of persons charged with material support to terrorist groups. Colombo cooperated with efforts to track terrorist financing, though no assets were identified.

"The United States also provided training for relevant Sri Lankan government agencies and the banking sector. The Government cooperated with the United States to implement both the Container Security Initiative and the Megaports program at the port of Colombo."

The Media Center for National Security (MCNS) reported that the police had uncovered arms and ammunition in a temple at Velanithurai in the Kaytes Island. It said the weapons were concealed above the statues of gods by the LTTE. Two priests were arrested.

TamilNet claimed that the Tigers had repulsed an offensive by the army on the Vavuniya-Mannar border.

LTTE's military spokesman Irasiah Ilanthirayan told TamilNet that two bodies of soldiers were captured with arms and ammunition when the army offensive involving 300 troopers towards Paalmpiddi was thwarted.

A Tiger cadre was killed in action.

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