Sri Lanka PM focuses on ending civil war

Sri Lanka's prime minister, now a high-profile candidate in presidential elections to be held later this year, said Monday his top priority would be to end the civil war with Tamil Tiger rebels.
Mahinda Rajapakse, in an interview with The Associated Press, said he would even be willing to be the first Sri Lankan president to meet the rebels' secretive leader.
"I am willing to walk an extra mile to reach (the) goal of peace," he said.
The presidential elections, which must be held before Nov. 22, are coming at one of the most tense times in Sri Lanka since an 2002 cease-fire brought a halt to fighting between the government and the Tigers....