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Guinea denies banning Sierra Leonean men

    ABIDJAN

    Guinea has denied a news report published on Thursday that it has banned Sierra Leonean men from entering the country by sea.

    Alhousseine Thiam, chairman of Guinea's Bureau national de coordination des refugies (National Refugee coordination office) told IRIN on Thursday: "Guinea has never, never restricted (the entry of) Sierra Leonean males."

    Thiam said there had been cases of boats coming to Guinea with some people requesting refuge and others - businessmen - saying they had no intention of staying. Those requesting asylum, Thiam said, were handed over to the appropriate local agency.

    The French news agency, AFP, had quoted boat operators in Freetown as saying on Wednesday that Guinea had stopped adult males from entering the country, in the wake of a recent spate of cross-border attacks by a rebel splinter group calling itself the Sierra Leonean People's Army.

    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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