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| East/Subsaharan Africa |
| Liberian rebels call ceasefire |
| 2003-06-27 |
| Liberia's main rebel group has declared an immediate ceasefire to avoid what it called a humanitarian catastrophe in the capital. Translation: They need time to reload. Rebels battling the Liberian government were fighting their way back into Monrovia when they called the ceasefire Friday. Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy released a statement saying the ceasefire took effect at 10 a.m. Friday. The rebel group is fighting to oust besieged President Charles Taylor as international pressure mounts for him to step down. U.S. President George W. Bush is among those to have called for an end to the fighting. "President Taylor needs to step down ... so that his country can be spared further bloodshed," Bush said Thursday, adding that his administration was working for peace in the war-ravaged country. Liberia's government offered a muted response, thanking Bush for his interest but warning that any hasty solution "could lead to anarchy, chaos and further deterioration of an already critical humanitarian situation." I'm not sure it could get a whole lot worse. Journalist Alphonso Toweh said people are angry that the United States is not doing anything to help stop the fighting, and calls are growing for U.S. military intervention to repel the rebels. "They said, 'If the U.S. can go into Iraq, why can't they come to Liberia? Liberia has oil as well,'" Toweh cited many Liberians as saying. If we were really out for oil, we would go in and no one would say a word. Well, a few, but no one that counts. |
| Posted by:Steve |