BANDA ACEH, Indonesia -- Indonesian troops clashed with aceh separatist rebels and arrested two of them on the eve of fresh peace talks in Switzerland, a military spokesman said Saturday.

Representatives of the Jakarta government and the exiled leadership of the separatists are scheduled to meet at an undisclosed location in Switzerland over the weekend.

The prospects for a breakthrough in the talks have been clouded by fresh violence in the province, where the free Aceh Movement (GAM) has been fighting for independence since 1976.

GAM officials had threatened to boycott the talks after the slaying of their military commander Abdullah Syafii, who was killed by Indonesian troops during a January 22 raid on a jungle hideout.

In the latest clashes on Friday, soldiers raided a suspected guerilla hideout in the Asan Kumbang region of Pidie in northern Aceh on Friday and arrested two rebels, said Aceh military spokesman Major Zaenal Muttaqin.

Separately, troops and rebels were involved in a gunfight in the Idi cut area of east Aceh on Friday but no one was hurt, Muttaqin said.

A 25-year-old man was found dead with gunshot wounds on Friday in Pidie, a humanitarian worker said. His family said he was abducted two weeks ago by unidentified people.

The Geneva-based Henry Dunant center for humanitarian dialogue, which has been involved in numerous unsuccessful attempts to broker a lasting peace in Aceh, confirmed on Friday that the peace talks would go ahead despite the boycott threat.

"Absolutely, they're still on," Andy Andrea, spokesman for the Henry Dunant center said, but he declined to comment further on the meeting.

Sources close to the talks said the meeting was largely aimed at restoring confidence between the two sides and was unlikely to address the issue of a cease-fire.

Cease-fires agreed in previous rounds of talks in Geneva have always broken down.

Indonesia said the GAM delegation will be headed by Malik Mahmud, whom GAM describes as its "prime minister." Wiryono Sastrowardoyo, a former ambassador to Australia, will lead the government team.

Despite the continuing peace efforts, there has been no sign of violence abating on the ground in Aceh, a staunchly Muslim province on the northern tip of Sumatra island.

About 200 people have been killed in clashes already this year. An estimated 1,700 died in 2001.

Jakarta last year granted Aceh greater self-rule and a larger share of its substantial oil and gas revenues. It also allowed the province to implement Islamic law but insisted that it will not countenance independence.

(CAPTION) The military leader of the Free Acech Separatist Movement (GAM) separatist rebels, Abdullah Syafei, (R) walks with his troops after giving a news conference in Indonesia. (file photo)