/ 24 March 1999

LIBERIAN TROOPS RUN AMOK

A GROUP of armed Liberian soldiers who stormed a village in the western part of the country looted homes and raped several women, independent radio reports said in the capital, Monrovia, on Wednesday. The incident occurred last week in Dambala, 110km west of Monrovia, in a town bordering neighbouring Sierra Leone. The rampaging soldiers, who apparently were in search of a missing man, also beat and detained scores of elders, according the village chief. The missing man was later found, reports said. Defence Minister Daniel Chea said the commander of the soldiers was brought to Monrovia for interrogation and that the unit’s command structure in Dambala has been reshuffled. Chea said the situation in Dambala is under control.