UN peacekeepers blocked by rebels again

A patrol of 107 UN peacekeepers and six military observers were stopped on Monday in eastern Sierra Leone by a group of Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels, Fred Eckhard, spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, reported in New York. The rebels said they did not have clearance to let an armed escort through. The Indian peacekeepers, part of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), returned to their base in the afternoon some four hours after being stopped, Eckhard said. The incident followed a meeting in Freetown on Thursday at which all the main stakeholders agreed that UNAMSIL and humanitarian workers would have unhindered access to all parts of the country, that the government was in full control all over Sierra Leone and that disarmament would take place throughout the country as facilities are made available, Eckhard reported on Friday. The meeting, convened by President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, was attended by RUF Party (RUFP) leader Foday Sankoh, ex-Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC)/Sierra Leone Army (SLA) leader Johnny Paul Koroma, and Hinga Norman, the leader of the Civil Defence Forces which supported the government against the rebels. Also present were Oluyemi Adeniji, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, and Major General Vijay Jetley, the UN Force Commander in Sierra Leone.