Suspected Tamil Tiger guerrillas hit an army truck with a Claymore mine that was planted inside a three-wheeler taxi in the district of Vavuniya, a military official said.

“They blocked the truck by driving a three-wheeler across the road,” the official said from the town of Vavuniya, 260 kilometres (160 miles) north of the capital Colombo. “Within a few seconds the three-wheeler exploded.”

The driver of the three-wheeler escaped, the official said, adding that five soldiers were killed and seven wounded.

Another Claymore mine exploded in the Jaffna peninsula, further north, killing the man who was carrying it and two others, a military source said.

Early investigations indicated the device was being set up to target a military convoy but had exploded prematurely, the source said.

An explosion ripped through the town of Trincomalee in the northeast, but there were no casualties, police said.

The attacks came after the Tigers announced they were suspending their participation in talks set to take place in Switzerland next week on saving a shaky ceasefire.