Japan set for Sri Lanka dialogue

Yasushi Akashi's visit comes amid increased violence in Sri Lanka.

In the latest incidents, officials say nine people have been killed in two separate clashes in the northern towns of Jaffna and Vavuniya.

Japan pledged $1bn to Sri Lanka at a donors conference in 2003 if progress were made in the peace talks.

Mr Akashi's four day visit will be his 12th since he was appointed to the post in October 2003.

He is due to meet President Mahinda Rajapakse and senior Tamil Tiger leaders, although officials say the precise details have not yet been worked out and it is not clear if he will travel to rebel controlled areas.

During a previous visit to Sri Lanka in December, Mr Akashi said that the country's security situation was deteriorating.

Violence intensified

The army says that at least seven people were killed in Jaffna when assailants travelling in two three-wheelers threw hand grenades at an army checkpoint.

A military spokesperson said that soldiers immediately blocked the road and returned fire.

He said that one of the three-wheelers used in the attack was hit and exploded, while the other toppled over.

The army says that seven bodies were recovered from the scene, and two soldiers were injured.

There has been no independent account of what happened.

Police say that in an earlier incident, neighbourhood guards - villagers appointed by the government to help guard communities - were attacked in Vavuniya.

Correspondents say two guards were injured in addition to the two who were killed.

Officials say no-one has claimed responsibility for the attack, although the Tigers are the main suspects.

Vavuniya is the last government-controlled town before entering territory controlled by the rebels.

Violence in Sri Lanka has intensified in recent weeks, with a suicide attack on the army headquarters last month and subsequent air strikes by the military against rebel positions in the east.

April was one of the bloodiest months since a 2002 ceasefire halted two decades of fighting between the two sides.

Talks that were due to be held in Switzerland were cancelled indefinitely after the rebels pulled out.

Their move followed a disagreement with the government over the safe passage of Tiger leaders based in the east to consult with those in the north of the island.

However the government says that some progress has been made in efforts to resolve this dispute, and it was now proposed that they should travel in a seaplane after the Tigers rejected the option of being transported by sea.

The dispute was originally triggered because the government refused to continue providing helicopter transport for the rebel leadership.

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