Colombo, February 27: The Sri Lankan military claimed Wednesday that Tamil Tiger rebels are in a state of disarray due to continued government military offensive in the island's north and northeast.

Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, the military spokesman, told reporters intense military offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has been continuing since Feb 14 and the rebels have suffered large casualties.

The frequent air strikes and ground offensives against identified rebel positions in the districts of Vavuniya, Mannar and Welioya have instilled fear in rebel leaders, forcing them to restrict their movements, the spokesman said.

"They do not even attend funerals of their members who die in fighting," Nanayakkara said.

At least 26 bodies of LTTE members who died in fighting have been handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross, Nanayakkara said.

The government says the fighting is part of its drive to eliminate terrorism perpetrated by the LTTE.

The LTTE has been fighting since the mid-1980s for a separate homeland for the Tamil minority in the north and east.