Sri Lanka sides hold rare talks

Many fear Sri Lanka may be slipping back to war

Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger officials have held a rare high-level meeting in the capital, Colombo.

Chief government negotiator Jayantha Dhanapala said his rebel counterpart, S Puleedevan, had paid a "courtesy call".

It comes after weeks of tension during which the Tigers have accused the military of waging a covert war by allegedly supporting a breakaway rebel.

Tuesday's talks - days before a Norwegian envoy is due in Sri Lanka - are a positive sign, say observers.

Official sources told the AFP news agency the meeting had been an "ice-breaker".

'Talks agenda'

Fears have been rising recently that the two sides may be slipping back towards war.

Earlier on Tuesday, there were reports of more violence in the island's east, the focal point of much of the recent tension.

Unidentified attackers threw a grenade into a Buddhist temple in Ampara district, killing two women and wounding five other people, police told the Associated Press.

On Monday, the government said it had prepared an agenda for talks, and was awaiting a response from the rebels.

Peace talks stalled between the two sides last summer. More than 60,000 people have been killed in the two decades since the Tigers began fighting for a Tamil homeland in the island's north and east.