Released abductees received in Freetown

Two trucks carrying 192 released abductees, mainly women and children, arrived at Cockerill military headquarters in Freetown on Friday, according to UNICEF in the city. They were collected from Magbeni, which is about 60 kms from Freetown.

There were 111 children among the abductees, about a third of them under 10 years of age, including several breast-feeding infants. Many were undernourished, tired, poorly clad and suffering from skin diseases, according to UNICEF.

The female members of the group, most of them teenagers, believed their captors had deliberately selected pregnant and lactating women for release. They said at least a quarter of the girls were pregnant, while seven were lactating adolescent mothers.

Several children had the letters AFRC "inscribed" on their chest, UNICEF said. One of them could not descend from the vehicle as he was weak and in a poor physical state. He was one of five taken to hospital for medical treatment.

After a brief screening at the military headquarters, the children were taken to an interim care centre, where they received medical check-ups, clothing and toiletries.

UNICEF sources in Freetown told IRIN on Monday that about 70 of the children had already been reunified with their families.

Based on UNICEF's experience over the last four months about 80 percent of abducted children whose families are in or near Freetown are reunified within 24 hours of their arrival.