Apr 25, Colombo: The United States called on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the rebel outfit of Sri Lanka to lay down arms and surrender to a third party but did not specify who the third party is.

At the daily press briefing on Friday the US State Department spokesman Robert Wood said "The Tamil Tigers must stop holding civilians and stop putting them in harm’s way. We call on the Tamil Tigers to lay down their arms and surrender to a third party."

The US remains extremely concerned for the safety of the remaining civilians in the no-fire zone, the spokesman said calling on the warring parties to end hostilities.

Referring to the visit by the two Indian emissaries to Sri Lanka on Friday Wood said the US supports the Indian efforts to stop the fighting. The spokesman added that the donor co-chairs (US, Japan, Norway, and the EU) in the G-8 are working together closely to find a way to end the fighting.

"The international community needs to provide assistance to a large number of displaced persons. The international community should be prepared to play a role to end the fighting," Wood said.

He added that the US fully supports the UN Secretary General's decision to send a UN humanitarian team to the no-fire zone, as the Secretary General's envoy Vijay Nambiar and President Rajapaksa discussed and agreed to last week.

The UN clarified Friday that its mission to the conflict zone referred to by the Secretary-General on Thursday (23), is a mission by the UN Country Team in Sri Lanka itself, not a mission from outside.

The State Department spokesman urged the Government of Sri Lanka to allow the team into the no-fire zone as soon as possible.

"We also urge the Government of Sri Lanka to allow critical supplies to pass more rapidly through military checkpoints, share its registration information of internally displaced persons with the UN, identify additional shelter sites, and authorize continued medical evacuations from the no-fire zone," he added.

Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher and US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Robert Blake participated in a conference with the Tokyo co-chairs yesterday, the spokesman informed.