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Peacekeepers Advance Amid Liberia Unrest
EFL West African peacekeepers took a crucial step toward securing Liberiaâs peace Tuesday, making their first major move into the volatile countryside and brokering a cease-fire to end the latest battle between rebels and government troops. Fighting erupted early Tuesday when rebels attacked and overran Kakata, 40 miles northeast of Monrovia, said Col. Theophilus Tawiah of Ghana, the peace forceâs chief of staff. "Oops, sorry!" About 650 soldiers from Guinea-Bissau arrived just outside Kakata as the two sides traded fire. The contingentâs Nigerian operations chief and a senior commander from Guinea-Bissau then met with leaders in the clash, negotiating an end to the battle. ``Our chief of operations intervened. The fighting has ceased and the people are deployed,ââ Tawiah told The Associated Press, referring to peacekeepers. After the fighting eased, the peacekeepers moved into the town in armored cars and trucks. Peacekeepers rounded up the rebels, who had briefly taken control of Kakata, loaded them onto trucks and transported them to their base at Tubmanburg - passing over miles of government-held roads without any reported incident. At least three rebel soldiers were wounded in the skirmish. Two trucks loaded with peacekeepers - an advance team preparing for the arrival of the larger force - had slept in Kakata overnight. The rest of the force arrived later Tuesday. None of the peacekeepers fired weapons during the fighting, Tawiah said. Hey look! The Uruguayans are coming! The deployment to Kakata, delayed for several days, marked the peace forceâs first major push outside the capital since they arrived more than a month ago. At least 200 civilians fled Kakata on Tuesday, said Coralie Lechelle, of the French aid group Medecins sans Frontieres. Liberian Defense Minister Daniel Chea insisted the peace force ``must be firm against any cease-fire violations.ââ Speaking at Careysburg, a crossroads 20 miles south of the fighting, Chea said ``the attack today is a test-case for their resolve.ââ As opposed to yours. Posted by: Steve White 2003-09-10 |
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