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IRIN-WA Update on Sierra Leone (Saturday 2 January)
SIERRA LEONE: ECOMOG regains initiative
(Following is a special update of the situation in Sierra Leone. The next full IRIN-West Africa Update will move on Monday 4 January)
West African intervention troops supported by jet fighters have repulsed a rebel attack on Port Loko, 60 km northeast of Freetown, an ECOMOG spokesman told IRIN today (Saturday). Rebels of the Revolutionary United Front attacked the town on Wednesday, an important district capital with normally 150,000 residents.
Meanwhile ECOMOG, has attacked rebel-held Lunsar, 24 km east of Port Loko, one reporter in Freetown told IRIN. He said there was still fighting in Lunsar today. ECOMOG would only say that more Nigerian troops continue to arrive in the country and that a major offensive was likely against the rebels. News reports put the number of ECOMOG troops in the country, mostly Nigerian, at between 15,000 and 19,000 men. So far, only Guinea and Ghana have reinforced the Nigerians but troops are expected from Gambia and Mali.
Freetown and environs calm
Freetown remained calm today as rebels were pushed out of outlying towns in an effort by ECOMOG to secure the area around the capital, the ECOMOG spokesman told IRIN. He said there had been no rebel attack in the vicinity over the last three days. ECOMOG repulsed an attack on Waterloo, 30 km south of Freetown, on Wednesday and another on the domestic airport of Hastings, 19 km southeast of Freetown, he said.
Defence chief criticises army defectors
Sierra Leone's Chief of Defence Staff, Brig. Gen. Maxwell Khobe, said on Friday that army defections to the rebels had posed "a great challenge" to the existence of the army in the near future, AFP reported.
AFP today quoted Khobe as saying that "it would require extraordinary effort" to redeem the image of Sierra Leonean soldiers. "Those of us who are committed to peace in Sierra Leone are totally embarrassed," AFP quoted him as saying. He added that the soldiers had also displayed "a high degree of cowardice in battle".
Abidjan, 2 January 1999, 16:00 GMT
[ENDS]
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 15:56:13 +0000 (GMT) From: UN IRIN - West Africa <irin-wa@wa.ocha.unon.org> Subject: SIERRA LEONE: Special on Sierra Leone 1999.01.2
Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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