The Sri Lankan army says it has killed more than 70 Tamil Tigers trying to escape a tiny strip of land in the northeast encircled by government troops.

Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said the rebels were killed Sunday while trying to cross Nanthi Kadal lagoon in boats.

“Troops observed the six boats in the lagoon and destroyed them. We recovered 70 bodies and an identification process is underway,” Nanayakkara said, adding that the top Tamil leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, was not among the dead.

On Saturday Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared a victory over the separatist Tamil Tigers, saying government forces had taken control of the island’s entire coastline for the first time in decades.

But there are reports that fighting continues in the area where the rebel leaders are believed to be cornered and that the rebels are preparing to recapture some areas lost to the army.

Currently only one and a half square kilometers are under the rebels’ control.