AFRC leader claims RUF massing in Makeni

Some 2,000 heavily armed Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels have arrived in the last two days in Makeni, some 140 km northeast of Freetown, the head of the ex-Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (ex-AFRC), Johnny Paul Koroma, claimed in an e-mail message received by IRIN on Friday.

Koroma said that two weeks ago he warned Sierra Leone government, UN and ECOMOG officials of “an alarming influx of heavily armed RUF rebels from Kailahun into Makeni led by Issa Sesay”.

“In addition,” Koroma said, “all able bodied men staying in Makeni have been rounded up and sent off to Kailahun for military training. They were driven in the trucks and vans looted from aid agencies.” Last week aid agencies said there had been looting of vehicles, equipment and supplies in Makeni.

IRIN was unable to reach a government spokesperson to comment on Koroma’s claims. However, IRIN learnt from a media source that an army officer had estimated the number of RUF reinforcements sent to Makeni at about 500.

On Friday, the Missionary News Agency (MISNA) reported clashes among rival groups along the road to Freetown near Lunsar, some 60 km west of Makeni, and said there was “an increasingly critical situation in northern Sierra Leone”.

Humanitarian sources in Freetown told IRIN on Friday that there had been unconfirmed reports of skirmishes around Lunsar last week but no other information was available. The situation around Makeni was reported to be quiet although people were trapped there, afraid to use the highways and suffering acute food shortages, another source said.

The Sierra Leone government expressed concern on Thursday about clashes between rival rebel groups saying they were threatening the ceasefire agreement signed on 7 July, according to Reuters.

Makeni is the gateway to north and north-eastern Sierra Leone, which have suffered from a lack of access to commercial and humanitarian assistance for much of the year. A humanitarian source told IRIN last week that if aid agencies were unable to access Makeni then activities over a larger area would be affected.