T
he Tamil Tiger rebels' new leader, Selvarasa Pathmanathan, has been arrested in a south-east Asian country.
Sri Lanka's defence secretary told the BBC that Mr Pathmanathan, better known as KP, was arrested on Wednesday.
A military spokesman said the rebel leader had been brought to Sri Lanka and was being questioned.
The rebels have confirmed the arrest. Mr Pathmanathan became the leader of the remnants of the Tigers after their defeat in May by Sri Lankan forces.
Earlier reports from Sri Lankan military officials suggested the arrest took place in Thailand, but Bangkok later denied them.
A pro-rebel website said Mr Pathmanathan was abducted from Kualalumpur, and blamed Sri Lankan and Malaysian intelligence for the disappeance of the LTTE leader
He was wanted on two Interpol warrants.
Earlier, Sri Lanka's Defence Minister, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, told the BBC that the new Tamil Tiger leader had been arrested, but he did not elaborate on the circumstances surrounding his capture.
Mr Pathmanathan was widely believed to be running the rebels' arms and smuggling networks for years.
But he took over the leadership of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after the former head, Velupillai Prabhakaran, and his top commanders were killed during the military offensive in north-eastern Sri Lanka in May.
As the new rebel leader, Mr Pathmanathan said the LTTE had decided to silence their guns and would try non-violent methods to achieve their goal of a separate state for the Tamil minority.
Analysts say his arrest has created a vacuum among the moderate elements within the LTTE supporters living overseas.
Nevertheless, Mr Pathmanathan's arrest is a significant blow for the LTTE.
He is also wanted in India in connection with the assassination of the former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, by a suspected Tamil female suicide bomber, in 1991.
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