Tigers accuse Lankan military of bad faith after deal for talks

Sri Lankan Buddhist monks hold balloons as they take part in a demonstration in Colombo yesterday to show their support to peace talks between the government and Tamil Tiger rebels. The two sides are expected to end a three-year deadlock in peace talks and enter face-to-face negotiations in Geneva next month. PHOTO: AFP

The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) said government troops had conducted a cordon-and-search operation in the northern Jaffna peninsula on Friday, despite Wednesday's agreement to hold face-to-face talks next month.

The charge was made as the LTTE's London-based chief negotiator Anton Balasingham returned home Saturday after five days on consultations with Tiger chief Velupillai Prabhakaran in rebel-held areas of the island's north.

Prabhakaran and Balasingham told Norway's special peace envoy Erik Solheim Wednesday they were ready to end the near three-year deadlock in the peace process by agreeing to meet with government officials in Geneva next month.

The talks are aimed at cementing a shaky ceasefire put in place in 2002.

The government had expressed "major relief" over this week's deal for a face-to-face meeting to stem a wave of killings that has left at least 153 people dead since December.