At least three people were killed and seven wounded on Wednesday in clashes between rebels and government troops and militiamen as United Nations peacekeepers began taking over from African soldiers in Liberia, wracked by 14 years of war.
Meanwhile the special UN envoy appealed to the international community for $280-million (240-million euros) to help reconstruct the west African state.
Heavy fighting broke out in the capital Monrovia after a convoy escorting a rebel leader came under attack in an eastern district of the city, witnesses said.
Sekou Damate Conneh, leader of the main rebel group Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (Lurd), was on his way to see President Moses Blah when his convoy came under attack in an area home to many supporters of exiled former president Charles Taylor.
Witnesses said civilians began throwing stones at Conneh’s convoy and his escorts opened fire, prompting militiamen and government troops to intervene.
”Lurd fighters responded by opening fire and throwing grenades. Two teenagers died instantly when a Lurd fighter threw a grenade in their direction,” said one witness, Francis Gbessay.
The sporadic firing, which lasted for about 15 minutes, sent civilians fleeing in all directions with traders abandoning their wares.
A Lurd fighter was also killed in the clashes, and troops of the UN force UNMIL fired in the air to disperse a group of militiamen who had set upon his body to mutilate it. The militiamen tried to burn the body, chanting: ”We want Taylor, we want Taylor”,
witnesses said.
Other witnesses also said Lurd had now regained a foothold in the suburbs.
”Lurd rebels have taken over parts of Somalia Drive from the Double Bridge near the Stephen Tolbert Estate to Bushrod Island,” said one.
”The Lurd rebels are openly brandishing weapons and have mounted check points at Barnersville Junction and New Georgia Junction,” said witness Fallah Poe, who said he had just returned from the area.
The new UN troops ”are still deployed in the area, but are doing nothing to stop the rebels from looting cell phones and vehicles from innocent civilians,” he added.
The convoy of more than 30 vehicles returned to base, forcing the meeting between Conneh and Blah to be called off for the third time since Saturday. One of the vehicles was carrying the outgoing commander of the west African (Ecomil) force General Festus Okonkwo,
The UN Security Council voted last month to deploy a peacekeeping force in Liberia, to help the west African country emerge from two successive civil wars that have left it the poorest nation in the world.
The UN force, called UNMIL, took over peacekeeping duties at an official ceremony Wednesday from west African soldiers who have been in Liberia since August 4, a week before Taylor stood down and went into exile in Nigeria.
Taylor’s exit in August paved the way for peace talks between rebels and the government which resulted in a ceasefire and the creation of an interim, civilian-led government, tasked with taking Liberia to elections.
The ceremony was attended by the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Liberia, Jacques Klein, and Liberian President Moses Blah.
Klein said 14 countries including Namibia, Morocco, Bangladesh, have consented to provide troops to UNMIL.
He said the entire 15 000 troops that make UNMIL would be in the country in the next three months.
Liberia needed $280-million to restart its economy and he was lobbying European countries to assist, Klein said.
UNMIL, will not only police the ceasefire between rebels of Lurd and the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (Model), and the government, but will also help disarm, demobilise, and reintegrate into civilian life former combatants in the long Liberian conflict, a UN statement said.
It will also assist humanitarian relief efforts, protect civilians from violence, and establish conditions for the safe return of refugees and internally dispaced people.
Around 3 500 west African soldiers are currently deployed in Liberia. Nigeria has contributed the bulk, with Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Senegal and Togo also sending soldiers.
The west African force has deployed primarily in Monrovia and its surroundings. A contingent from Benin is expected in the country shortly.
The west Africans on the ground will be incorporated in the UN force.
On Wednesday morning, most of the west African peacekeepers at checkpoints near the capital Monrovia were prepared for the changeover, already wearing the blue caps and badges of the UN force.
At full strength, UNMIL will be able to cover the entire country, where sporadic fighting still continues and where war-weary civilians flee on mere rumours of unrest. – Sapa-AFP