The West African intervention force, ECOMOG, has displayed to reporters nearly 90 rebel prisoners captured during fighting in Freetown in January, Sierra Leone presidential spokesman Septimus Kaikai told IRIN today (Thursday).
The Sierra Leone News website also reported that many of the prisoners were members of the country’s former army and police officers. Following the battle for the city, the UN and other organisations accused ECOMOG of summarily killing rebels and suspected collaborators, a charge denied by both Kaikai and ECOMOG spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Chris Olukolade.
“ECOMOG is bending over backwards to prove to the world it respects established laws governing the conduct of wars,” Olukolade said. Kaikai told IRIN that had it wanted, ECOMOG would have executed hundreds of people.
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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