Sierra Leonean refugees complete exodus from Lofa

A final group of 165 elderly and infirm Sierra Leonean refugees were taken on Monday by UNHCR to a new camp at Sinje, 60 kms from Monrovia, at the end of a week-long transfer operation from Kolahun, attacked by armed men in mid-August. The refugees and their caretakers were the only Sierra Leoneans left in Kolahun, in the troubled northern province of Lofa, after the attack forced aid workers to withdraw from the area, UNHCR said. Over 10,000 other refugees, worried about further violence and the forced absence of humanitarian staff, had already left Kolahun and walked 100 kms to Tarvey, a town closer to Monrovia. UNHCR had sought permission from Liberian authorities to operate a convoy to Kolahun, as well as an armed escort. Permission was granted 10 days ago and 10 trucks along with medical staff and an ambulance set out for the northern district on 16 October. UNHCR said road conditions were terrible and heavy, earth-moving equipment had to be used to pull trucks out of the mud. Two trucks broke down en route. There were also repeated delays at military road blocks. Higher-ranking members of the Liberian army, including the minister of defense, had to intervene on several occasions to make sure the convoy was allowed to proceed, it said. Eight trucks returned to Monrovia on Sunday. Almost 5,000 Sierra Leoneans who had been in Kolahun have now been transferred to Sinje and about as many remain in Tarvey. There are around 90,000 Sierra Leonean refugees in Liberia.