ECOMOG says more troops needed

The commander of the West African ECOMOG peacekeeping force in Sierra Leone has said more troops had to be deployed around the country if it was to contain rebel activities. According to a report on Tuesday in the Nigerian daily, 'The Guardian', the commander, Major-General Felix Mujakperuo, said at least 5,000 more men would be needed and international support would be required because it was difficult for some West African nations to meet the "enormous" costs involved. Mujakperuo's remarks were made to reporters on his arrival in the economic capital Lagos for consultations with the Nigerian government. The capital of Sierra Leone is safe "Freetown is very safe now," he said explaining that rebels forces had been "flushed" from the city. But he said there were still problems containing rebels elsewhere in the country and that these could only be overcome if there were more troops. He said the rebels had only been able to overrun Freetown last year because of a lack of ECOMOG troops.