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RUF head denies setting conditions on UNAMSIL

[Guinea] An Ivorian truck, fully loaded with palm oil and tinned food, has broken down on its way to Man, Cote d'Ivoire. Borders are officially closed with Cote d'Ivoire since the crisis erupted in Sept 2002. Nimba Mount, Forest Region, June 2004. Pierre Holtz/IRIN
Un camion ivoirien en Guinée s’apprête à passer la frontière pour décharger ses marchandises à Man, à quelques dizaines de kilomètres de là
    MAN

    RUF interim leader Issa Sesay has denied setting conditions for the deployment of UN troops in rebel-controlled territory in Sierra Leone, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard told reporters in New York on Monday.

    Sesay’s clarification came on Wednesday in a meeting with the UN Mission Force Commander, Lt-Gen Daniel Opande. Sesay described as unauthorised the statement attributed to him and posted on his organization’s web site.

    In the statement, still posted on Tuesday, Sesay had allegedly set several conditions for UN troops to deploy in rebel territory. One of the demands was that RUF leader Foday Sankoh be released from prison.

    However, Opande said in a BBC broadcast on Thursday that Sesay wanted the UN to deploy “as soon as possible”.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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