The US army is building a depot in Gabon for humanitarian aid destined for Central African countries, US diplomatic sources said Tuesday. Around 40 troops began work in December on the 40 000-square-metre depot. It is being built out of light materials close to the country’s main international airport at Libreville on a Gabonese army base. The sources say that as well as providing secure storage for aid materials, the building could also serve as a shelter for refugees from natural disasters. ”It is not a military base,” said the source, who insisted that the US troops would leave once the building was completed. ”The Gabonese army, which owns the land on which it is being built, will be responsible for the depot’s security,” he added. The depot is the result of an agreement between the two countries and a visit to Gabon in October 2000 by the commander of the United States’ Third Air Force in Europe, General Kenneth W Hess. Hess is responsible for aid operations and African humanitarian missions in sub-Saharan Africa. – Sapa-AFP
Tuesday January 8, 2002