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| Africa: West | ||||||
| Liberians Greet W. African Troop Arrival | ||||||
| 2003-08-05 | ||||||
Hoisting a Nigerian army officer on their shoulders, Liberians cheered Monday’s arrival of the first soldiers in an international rescue mission that will try to end 14 years of carnage and see warlord-turned-president Charles Taylor into
Toyota LandCruiser with a minigun? The sound of gunfire and black smoke rising from Liberia’s ruined capital made clear the war was far from over. For much of the day, Liberian rebels and Taylor’s troops fired automatic weapons and rocket-launchers across the Old Bridge, separating the capital’s rebel-held island port and the government’s downtown stronghold. At one point, rebels taunted their foes, dancing with brooms, "You bastards! You ruined my best set of falsies!" Smoky plumes rose from the rebel-held side of the bridge. Residents said warehouses were smoldering from fires started by mortar shells Saturday. Taylor’s troops accused rebels of looting before peacekeeping forces move in, but arguments over goods among Taylor’s AK-47-armed fighters suggested they were doing the same. "This is our concession! Go loot somewheres else!" Watching the clashes, a 16-year-old government militiaman named Victor was among those pinning his hopes on the peace force. ``Help us stop the killing. I’m very tired,’’ he said, standing with automatic rifle in hand.
Outstanding command of the obvious. The first peacekeepers concentrated on setting up defenses at the airport. And troops won’t move into Monrovia until sufficient numbers arrive, the force’s Nigerian commander, Brig. Gen. Festus Okonkwo, told reporters. In New York, a U.N. peacekeeping official, Hedi Annabi, said just deploying the first 850-soldier Nigerian battalion and its equipment would take until Aug. 17. The United States is to begin flying in the second Nigerian battalion around Aug. 15, Annabi said. Oh come on! Even with helicopters it can’t take that long. What are they using, Channel 5’s traffic chopper? Later, Annabi said the United Nations plans to send ``a fairly sizable force’’ to Liberia, ideally starting on Oct. 1, to replace the Nigerian-led multinational force that began arriving in the war-battered west African nation on Monday. The mission will likely be modeled on the U.N. peacekeeping mission in neighboring Sierra Leone, which had 17,500 troops at its height. West African peacekeeping troops deployed repeatedly in Liberia in the 1990s, at times coming under attack from forces led by Taylor, then
Or until Oct. 1st, whichever comes first. However, he said Nigeria needs far more international backing for the mission, expected to eventually cost at least $2 million daily. As Fred noted yesterday, how is it that an oil-rich country can’t afford this? Two battalions, about 1700 men, that’s $1,100 per man per day for pay, logistics, everything. Somebody’s padding the check. Nigerian Foreign Minister Oluyemi Adeniji flew to Liberia on Monday carrying what aides said was a message for Taylor. Adeniji left without disclosing the message, but Nigerian officials said Taylor assured them he would start preparing to leave Liberia as soon as he cedes power. ``He even said the place would no longer be safe for him them,’’ Nigerian diplomat Folu Ogunbanwo, who was at the meeting, told The Associated Press. Gitmo would be safe.
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| Posted by:Steve White |
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| Posted by: Steve 2003-8-5 3:28:32 PM |
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| Posted by: Fred 2003-8-5 3:18:14 PM |
| #1 |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-8-5 9:15:55 AM |