Sri Lankans are celebrating in the capital Colombo for a third straight day as news of the historic defeat of the Tamil Tiger rebels begins to sink in.
Celebrations went into high gear as the government announced the death of the Tigers' leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran.
People were glued to their television screens as state TV ran footage of what it said was the slain rebel leader's body. Tamil media outside Sri Lanka have denied the army's claims that the Tiger chief is dead.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa was all smiles as he went before a special meeting of parliament to declare his country "liberated from the clutches of terrorism".
The president is being hailed for the victory, which he says will bring to an end the decades-long conflict that has divided the nation. But many Tamils say the lack of a political settlement means there will be no peace.
Women, men and children all joined in the celebrations.
Some offered sweets to soldiers in the capital, grateful for an end to a war which saw rebel attacks on Colombo by the rebels based in the north-east.
The army on Monday released images of its soldiers celebrating in Mullivaikal, where it defeated the last of the rebels.
But the victory did not come without a huge military and human cost. Thousands of Tamil civilians are thought to have been killed in the recent fighting.
Hundreds of thousands more were forced to flee their homes as the army pursued the rebels to the bitter end.
Meanwhile, Tamil supporters - like these women in Germany - held demonstrations around the world, voicing their anger about the civilian casualties.
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