Heavy Artillery attack on Mullivaikal make shift hospital.64 patients dead Government Doctor confirmed

A government health official said at least 64 patients and bystanders were killed in two artillery attacks that hit the hospital Saturday. Another 87 people were wounded, said the official, who declined to be identified by name because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The artillery attacks came amid growing international concerns over the fate of the estimated 50,000 civilians trapped in the war zone, following a U.N. report that nearly 6,500 civilians were killed in the last three months.

International pressure has grown for a cease-fire between the government forces and Tamil rebels to protect the trapped civilians.

The government has rejected calls for a cease-fire, saying its troops are on the verge of ending the quarter-century civil war