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UN troops return fire in Kenema

A quick reaction company of UN forces returned fire on Saturday as unknown assailants shot at Ghanaian UN troops at a Kenema base of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), a spokesman said.

"Some 22 rounds of small arms fire were fired at the HQ position," Philip Winslow, UNAMSIL's information officer, told IRIN on Monday.

The attackers fled into the bush around midnight. No casualties were reported, he said, and the motive behind the incident remained unclear.

Jordanians arrive

Meanwhile, an advance team of 210 Jordanian soldiers arrived at Lungi International Airport on Sunday to join UNAMSIL. The remainder of Jordan's two battalions are expected to arrive as soon as logistics are in place, UNAMSIL reported. The Zambian contingent is expected early in May.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on 3 April that the full UN
peacekeeping force of 11,100 should be in Sierra Leone by the end of July.


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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