Page 6
Rebels released 30
%
more U.N. hostages
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP)
— Rebels released 30 United Nations
(U.N.) hostages Sunday, boosting
hopes that the remaining personnel
held captive in Sierra Leone would
be freed soon.
The development brought the
number of remaining U.N. captives
to fewer than 100 from about 500 ini-
feel very
happy. I
thought we were
never going to
reach this place.
Thank God we
are here."
— Lance CpI. Elias Mwanza
U.N. hostage
daily captured in early May. Some
143 hostages were flown Friday and
Saturday from Monrovia to Free
town, the capital.
U.N. spokesperson David
Wimhurst said the 30, all Zambians,
were flown to the Liberian capital of
Monrovia. Liberian officials said
they had arrived from the remote
northeastern Sierra Leonean town of
Pendemu, where rebels handed
them over.
Dressed in military uniforms and
clutching bottles of mineral water,
the former hostages expressed relief
and joy. Most were in good physical
condition, although some were be
ing treated for malaria, minor in
juries and fatigue, Liberian medical
officials said.
"I feel very happy. 1 thought we
were never going to reach this place.
Thank God we are here," said Lance
Cpl. Elias Mwanza, who suffered a
jaw and other injuries.
Mwanza said some of the captors
had tormented the hostages while
others were more kind and
promised not to kill them "because
we are their African brothers."
Pvt. Goma Justin, who had deep
cuts on his foot from stepping on
broken glass, described his captivity
as "rough."
Despite the releases, fighting be
tween rebels and pro-government
forces was reported over the week
end at the strategic crossroads of
Rogberi Junction, about 50 miles east
of Freetown, Wimhurst said. He had
no further details.
Meanwhile, West African heads of
state were gathering for weekend
meetings in the Nigerian capital, Abu
ja, to discuss the crisis in Sierra Leone.
The rebels have killed tens of
thousands of people and intention
ally mutilated many more during
the 8-year-old civil war. The conflict
reignited earlier this month when
the Revolutionary United Front
rebels took the U.N. peacekeepers
hostage and began advancing to
ward Freetown.
Associated Press Television
News cameraman Miguel Gil
Moreno de Mora and Reuters corre
spondent Kurt Schork were killed
Wednesday in a rebel ambush. South
African cameraman Mark Chisholm
and Greek photographer Yannis
Behrakis suffered light injuries in the
same attack.
WORLD
THE BATTALION
Monday, May 29.!
• Hey, M
Eritrea’s civilians flee fighting,
peace talks loom over 2-year war
ocal D|s brine
lie
fast-gre
art
ASMARA, Eritrea (AP) — Fighting raged Sunday
between the Horn of Africa's warring neighbors on
the eve of peace talks — opening a new front in Er
itrea's smoldering humanitarian crisis.
Infantry and artillery clashes in what's become
the heaviest fighting in the 2-year-old border war
threaten to uproot 200,000 people around the central
city of Mendefera, the United Nations warned. The
2-week-old Ethiopian offensive already has sent
nearly one-seventh of Eritrea's people fleeing north,
some into neighboring Sudan.
Trucks, buses and vans commandeered by the gov
ernment poured into the grounds of a school about 20
miles north of Mendefera, disgorging hundreds of
evacuees, mostly women and children, each carrying
a bulging, plastic bag or two of their belongings.
Boys clambered off the high-paneled, open-
backed trucks first.
Parcels, babies and women — clasping their skirts
to protect their modesty — followed.
"We have only these pieces of clothes," said 70-
year-old Bisrat Berhe, pinching the hem of her skirt as
she crouched under the eaves of a primary school that
in the past day had become home to 18,000 Eritreans.
At least 6,000 new arrivals were expected by day's
end, said Simon Nhongo, a U.N. official.
Eritrea said last week that fighting already had
dislodged 555,000 of its 4 million people.
Ethiopia's military now is pursuing the retreating
adversary miles deep into Eritrea — putting its citi
zens into panicked flight ahead of the advance.
Increasingly punished by the latest offensive, Er
itrea agreed last week to withdraw from all disput
ed territory and return to talks set for Monday in Al
geria on resolving the neighbors' 2-year-old war over
their poorly delineated border.
Ethiopia has made plain its bargaining strategy
for the talks.
"We shall negotiate while we fight and we shall
fight while we negotiate," Prime Minister Meles
Zenawai told African diplomats in the Ethiopian cap
ital, Addis Ababa, last week.
Sunday morning, Ethiopian warplanes bombed
a nearly completed power plant near the port city of
Massawa, Eritrea's Foreign Ministry said, calling the
attack "vandalism and senseless destruction."
Ethiopia said the planes attacked a militar,
stallation, not a power plant.
For its part, Ethiopia accused Eritreans on Sup
of shelling its forces near one of the easternta
from which they had pledged to withdraw,
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopians rallied by thelt
dreds of thousands to celebrate the ninth annivf
of the overthrow of the military regime that a
ruled Ethiopia, which in 1991 still included thel
province of Eritrea.
The ralliers — grizzled veterans of the gueri
war against Benito Mussolini's forces aloi
young men in uniform — had new triumphs
ebrate as well.
"The invading Eritrean forces have beender
ished!" President Negasso Ghidada told theel.
crowd, listing towns and territories retakenbv
country's forces in past days.
On the eve of talks in this David-and-Gok
struggle, which pits a country of 4 million—Eiit
— against one of 61.7 million — Ethiopia-
vaunted Eritrean army seems, at least for the:
ment, to have misplaced its slingshot.
Rem<
Fiji rebels reject latest offer to end hostage crisis
SUVA, Fiji (AP) — The leader of
rebels holding the former prime min
ister and 30 others hostage in Fiji on
Sunday rejected an offer to end the cri
sis — but said there could be a peace
ful resolution within days.
Rebel leader George Speight said he
expects a new offer within two days that
could lead to the release of the captives.
He told Australian television that
he "would not be surprised if it is
over this week."
Meanwhile, late Sunday in the Fi
jian capital of Suva, 200 rebel support
ers, some carrying guns, defied road
blocks, vandalized a local television
station and fired shots into the air.
A police officer died from gunshot
wounds Sunday night, a hospital
spokesperson said on condition of
anonymity. It was unclear when or
where he was shot, and the death
could not be immediately confirmed.
In an effort to end the 10-day crisis.
President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara on
Saturday fired the democratically
elected government and said the rebels
would likely be granted immunity
from prosecution.
But Speight rejected the offer, in
sisting Mara resign and that Fiji's
1997 constitution, which indigenous
Fijians blame for giving too much
power to the nation's ethnic Indian
minority, be scrapped.
Mara, a figurehead who normally
holds little government power, said he
would appoint a caretaker administra
tion by today and rule the Pacific na
tion until then through state-of-emer-
gency powers.
Speight and about 60 gunmen
have been holding Prime Minister
Mahendra Chaudhry and more than
30 members of his government
hostage since storming the parlia
ment compound on May 19.
Chaudhry, elected last year, is the
country's first leader from its minority
Fijians of Indian ancestry.
Speight claims to be acting on be
half of the Pacific island nation's ma
jority indigenous Fijians, and wants to
reduce the powers that Indians can
hold in the government.
A reporter for Australian tete
who was allowed briefly to v.
Chaudhry said he saw no sign-
physical abuse.
Earlier Sunday, rebel guardsk
ing automatic weapons opened:
gates of parliament to let in some 1:
supporters for a 90-minute Methoo
church service.
Afterward, Speight stood for 10:
utes shaking hands with supporters
Main trading partner Austral
well as New Zealand, the Ui
States and the United Nationsk
condemned any deal that replaces!
elected government as giving in
terrorism.
ramurals Rec Fitness Aquatics Golf Course TAMU Outdoors Sport Clubs
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