Army destroys 2,000 land mines

Guinea Bissau's military destroyed at least 2,000 land mines on Tuesday in what it termed a "gesture" to call international attention to the need to make the area around the capital safe, news reports said. The operation was conducted in the neighbourhoods of Enterramento and Plaque-2, formerly controlled by the Military Junta that ousted President Joao Bernardo Vieira, AFP reported. Residents of both neighbourhoods were asked to evacuate the area before the mines were destroyed by military engineers, the Junta said on radio. The Junta had accused the pro-Vieira forces of having planted thousands of mines in a vain effort to stop Junta forces from breaching the capital's defences.