Low expectations for Lanka talks

Recent violence has left more than 100 dead

Norwegian peace envoy Eric Solheim has played down hopes that he will be able to achieve a major breakthrough in talks in Sri Lanka next week.

Mr Solheim is due to meet President Mahinda Rajapakse and Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.

Although a 2002 ceasefire is still formally in place, analysts say Sri Lanka is now enduring a low intensity guerrilla war.

Peace talks facilitated by Norway stalled in 2003.

In the latest violence, three policemen and one civilian have been killed in an explosion in the town of Batticaloa, officials say.

Seven army personnel and 13 police were also injured in the incident as were five civilians.

'Understanding'

"I think it's very important to play down the expectations," Mr Solheim told journalists in the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

"What could hopefully be achieved through this visit is some kind of understanding between the parties on how they would stabilise the ceasefire and reduce the far too high number of ceasefire violations as we're seeing at the moment."

Earlier this week Norwegian-led Scandinavian ceasefire monitors suspended work in the eastern district of Trincomalee after 12 sailors were hurt in a suspected rebel attack.

Two civilians died in ensuing gunfire, the army said.

It was the latest in a string of violence incidents in the area.

More than 100 people have died in recent violence in Sri Lanka, including dozens of security personnel and civilians.

On Thursday parliament again extended a state of emergency introduced last August after the assassination of Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar.

Denials

Since December, there have been six major deadly attacks on military personnel in Sri Lanka. About 80 soldiers and sailors have been killed in those and other incidents.

The rebels have denied involvement, although few in Sri Lanka believe them, the BBC's Dumeetha Luthra in Colombo says.

There are increasing reports of harassment, abductions and killings of Tamil civilians.

Tamil Tiger supporters say more than 40 Tamils have been killed by the security forces in attacks since December. Others blame some of those deaths on the rebels or other armed groups.

President Rajapakse has said he remains committed to the ceasefire, but has accused the rebels of the escalating violence.

More than 60,000 people have died during two decades of conflict.