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Africa: West
Civilians, Gunmen Loot Liberian Port
2003-08-14
Looting and lawlessness in Liberia? EFL.
Thousands of civilians and gunmen pillaged oil and sacks of grain from Monrovia’s port Wednesday ahead of rebels’ promised withdrawal, and the United States pledged 200 troops to bolster West African peacekeepers.
The way that sentence is written, you'd think the sequence was...
"Sir! The Liberian civilians and gunnies are pillaging the port!"
"Good, Smithers! Good! Just what we need to send in 200 troops!"
A ship laden with humanitarian aid bobbed offshore, ready to deliver food and supplies to civilians starving and facing disease in the besieged capital, where many have subsisted on leaves.
"Hold off unloading the groceries, Mister First Mate! They haven't finished pillaging the ones they've got yet!"
"Aye aye, Cap'n!"
After Taylor’s departure, rebels promised U.S. and other officials they would withdraw from the port and the rest of Monrovia by noon Thursday. If that happens, aid workers could begin bringing in supplies within days, U.N. deputy emergency relief coordinator Carolyn McAskie said.
Keep the rebels there, they can ensure that the Nigerian peacekeepers don’t cherry-pick the merchandise.
The U.S. force would be the largest sent ashore despite international pressure for the Bush administration to help the wartorn West African nation. Three U.S. warships carrying about 2,300 Marines already await off shore, and the Pentagon said some 200 American forces would be sent in if the rebels surrender the port. U.S. forces would include elements to work with the peacekeepers, Navy SEALS to help secure the waterway and engineers to assess the port for delivery of humanitarian supplies. The fighting has split the capital into the government-held downtown and the rebel-held port, which is controlled by the larger of Liberia’s two rebel groups. Government areas have been unable to get food from the port, leaving trapped civilians in Monrovia’s government territory famished and eating little but leaves. Mainly young men but also girls and the elderly joined fighters streaming out of Monrovia’s port Wednesday with sacks of grain, cooking oil and other goods taken from shipping containers and international aid agency warehouses. After hours of pillaging, rebel commanders ordered looters out of the port. ``We are totally out of in control of the situation,’’ said rebel official Sekou Fofana as his troops — mostly child fighters — kicked, beat, and fired guns over the heads of throngs carting off bags of food, many marked with U.N. and World Food Program seals.
"Store’s closed for the day. Y’all come back tomorrow after our distributor the UN restocks the shelves!"
Rebel leaders denied their men were looting.
This is technically true — all their fighters wear bustiers or nose-cone bras.
Liberia’s main rebel group has held the port since the third week of June, halted at the city’s front-line bridges while government fighters hold downtown. Rebels, intent on keeping government troops from retaking the port, have insisted that peacekeepers be in place Thursday to secure it. West African peace troops began landing in Monrovia on Aug. 4, though only about 800 have arrived so far, most of them Nigerian. Based at the airport outside the city, they have made only brief forays into Monrovia to try to score some good dope and some girls. A second, 776-member battalion of Nigerian forces will start deploying Thursday, Nigerian army spokesman Col. Chukwuemeka "Chuk" Onwuamaegbu said. As peace forces prepared to move into the capital, Liberia’s government and the smaller, southern-based insurgency traded blame for Wednesday’s fighting south of Monrovia. Rebel representative Boi Bleaju Boi said his forces had fallen back to show that they had no intention of taking Liberia’s key airport, but that government forces were attacking them. Boi spoke in Accra, Ghana, site of Liberia’s sporadic peace talks.
"We’re not falling back, we’re running away in a different direction!"
Government representatives denied instigating the fighting, saying they hoped for the war to end after Taylor stepped down, as rebels wanted. ``For us, the war should be over by now,’’ said Liberia’s deputy defense minister, Austin Clarke.
Tiny detail, Austin: you forgot to put your weapons down.
Refugees fleeing toward the capital earlier said rebels were attacking civilians and targeting men of fighting age, raising fears that they may be seeking a share of power after Taylor’s resignation.
Raising fears? Isn’t that what they were fighting for, other than Chuckles’ head on a stick?
Posted by:Steve White

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