KATHMANDU -- In an about-face, Maoist rebels said Wednesday they had formed a committee to hold dialogue with Nepal's government and suggested they would halt their attacks on civilian infrastructure.

In a statement sent overnight to Kathmandu newspapers, the rebels, who have been fighting since 1996 to topple the constitutional monarchy, said their "politburo" had decided Tuesday to set up the committee for dialogue.

The Maoists made clear that any peace talks would have to involve king Gyanendra, AFP reported.

"The meeting has formed a central level dialogue committee to hold talks with all political forces, including the current ruler of old regime, provided a conducive environment is ensured," the statement said. "The meeting emphasized the need to stop all activities that would destroy the physical infrastructures linked to the people's welfare."

The Maoists, who exert de facto control in at least six of Nepal's 75 districts, are known for their attacks on bridges, electric plants and other civilian infrastructure, arguing that such projects benefit only the kingdom's wealthy minority. The statement, quoted in Nepalese newspapers, was signed by Maoist supremo Pushpa Kamal Dahal, known by his alias "Prachanda," or "the fierce."

"The meeting has framed new political and military strategies," it said.

But the rebels said their key demands remained unchanged: A roundtable conference to determine Nepal's fate, followed by an interim government and a "constituent assembly" that would redraft the Constitution.

The rebels also "strongly warned" Nepal's political parties to tell their members not to "spy" on them. The Maoists have carried out a string of killings, mostly in rural areas, of perceived supporters of Nepal's political establishment.

The Maoists' "people's war" has left dead more than 7,300 people since 1996, according to security forces' figures.

The rebels on November 15 launched one of their biggest offensives yet, sacking the headquarters of the northwestern district of Jumla and a security post in western Gurkha, the ancestral home of king Gyanendra.

The raids left dead at least 218 people, according to police.

The massive offensive had been interpreted as a rejection of overtures for peace talks by Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand.

The premier was sworn in October 11, a week after Gyanendra dismissed elected prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba as "incompetent," in the most direct intervention by the constitutional monarch since the end of absolute royal rule in 1990.

There was no immediate reaction to the Maoist statement from the government.

But cabinet sources indicated the government would pursue contacts with the Maoists through Nepalese human rights activists and parliamentarians sympathetic to leftist causes.

Home Minister Dharma Bahadur Thapa had said Saturday the Maoists needed to make "a formal approach to the government" to initiate talks. On Wednesday, the leader of the top mainstream Communist Party called the Maoist statement "significant."

"If Prachanda has issued the statement with sincerity and wants to implement it sincerely, this is a step that should be welcomed," said Madhav Kumar Nepal, who was the main opposition leader in the dissolved Parliament.

"We hope the Maoist leaders will start dialogue without further delay," Nepal said.

The last formal dialogue between the government and the Maoists took place last year, when then premier Deuba initiated three rounds of talks with the rebels.

But negotiations deadlocked over Maoist demands to scrap the monarchy, and the rebels broke the cease-fire in November 2001 with a flurry of attacks.

Gyanendra, on Deuba's advice, responded by deploying the army against the rebels for the first time and imposing a state of emergency that remained in effect until August.