LTTE chief hastily retreats before forces surround area

Beleaguered LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran and his top commander Pottu Amman were hiding in an area in the last rebel bastion of Pudukudiyirippu but hastily retreated from there just before it was surrounded by Sri Lankan forces, a top military officer said. "They have hastily retreated from the area once they got the news that troops were going to surround that area,