Sri Lankan security forces have killed at least 15 Tamil Tiger rebels and lost two troopers in fresh violence that has claimed 19 lives so far in the island's east, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.

Two soldiers were killed and 19 injured in a confrontation in the Batticaloa district on Wednesday, the defence ministry said, adding that 15 rebels were gunned down.

There was no independent confirmation of the casualties and both sides are known to inflate the losses on the other.

Police said two Muslim men were also shot dead in the northern town of Vavuniya on Monday night.

The incidents came as peace broker Norway cancelled a meeting with the Tiger leadership today following a government request to suspend all contacts pending a review on Wednesday.