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In the News Page
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Refugee crisis and turmoil. Conde trial.
Security tight in Guinea after rebel attacks
9/00
Guinea rounds up refugees 9/00
Guinea panic
as President condemns refugees 9/00
RUF Rebels kidnap Italian
priests 9/00
A plethora
of news on the unrest over the refugees in Guinea, 9/00
Alpha Cond�
sentenced to five years in prison
Guinea 'inciting refugee
attacks'
UN Scales Down W. Africa
Operation 9/18
UN
remembers its dead 9/21
Scores of civilians
flee border village 9/25
Attack in Guinea kills nearly
70, 9/30
October, 2000
The refugee crisis continues
Civil war fears in Guinea
10/23
Threat of Widening
War in West Africa; 400,000 Refugees in Guinea Are Vulnerable
10/19
Liberia
Refutes Guinean Claim Of Shooting Down Helicopter, 10/18
U.N.
Fights Polio in Africa, 10/10
Guinean
security forces invade Liberian ambassador's residence 10/10
The Pope's call over Guinea Killings 10/07
October, 2000
Monday, 23 October, 2000, 13:07 GMT 14:07 UK
Guinea blames rebel attacks on neighbouring countries
By BBC regional analyst Elizabeth Blunt
Following a series of
border attacks from rebels, the West African
republic of Guinea may now be
threatened with the kind of civil war faced by
neighbours, Sierra Leone and
Liberia.
Since the beginning of September, raiders have struck from the two
both
countries killing civilians and burning villages.
The attacks were
mainly from across two parts of the Sierra Leone
border, and also from
Liberia near the town of Macenta. Nearly 360 people have been killed in the
raids though a local member of
the parliament for the Forest region around
Macenta says the death toll in
the Liberian border region alone could be as
high as 1,500.
Dissidents
The attacks have been claimed by a dissident
movement known as the
'Rassemblement des Forces Democratiques de Guinee'.
Taylor accuses Guinea of supporting Liberian rebels
Someone
calling himself Mohamed Lamine Fofana and describing himself as
their
spokesman has been calling international radio stations on their behalf.
But
no-one has heard of a Mr Fofana before, and the Guinean Government
refuses
to accept that Guinean dissidents have anything to do with the
raids. The
government's version is that the country is suffering a foreign
invasion,
from Liberia, and by Liberian-backed RUF rebels from Sierra Leone.
In fact
two different things seem to be going on at the same time.
In the Forest
region, around Macenta, the fighting is mostly a Liberian
affair, with
President Charles Taylor's forces mounting cross-border
raids against
Liberian rebel bases. The presence of these rebels is an open secret in Guinea.
In the capital, Conakry, the Liberian oppositon is discreet, but in
Macenta Ulimo-K fighters are there for all to see, manning road blocks, and
playing an active part in the defence of the city.
Mutineers
But on the Sierra leone border, Guinean dissidents
do seem to be involved.
Conte wants refugees out of Guinea
There have been persistant
reports of a rebel group training inside
Liberia with, at its core, Gbago
Zoumanigui and the army mutineers who fled
after narrowly failing to
overthrow the government in 1996. After training, the rebels are reported to
have moved across the border
to Sierra Leone and linked up with the Liberian
backed movement there, the
RUF. This alliance seems to be responsible for
the attacks near Kindia and
Forecariah. So far the assailants do not seem to
have taken ground, and the attacks
have been pushed back. But they could
still cause serious trouble for Guinea.
They have put pressure on the army,
which already has a history of
mutiny and coups d'etat. In the Forest
region, fighting between Liberian dissidents - mostly
Mandingo - and
Liberian Government forces (substantially Gio or Mano) has stirred
up
resentments between the same tribes within Guinea.
Fate of refugees
Caught in the middle are the refugees- nearly
half a million of them,
some of whom have lived in Guinea for as long as 10
years.
Most refugees have lived in Guinea for nearly 10 years
Shortly
after the attacks started President Lansana Conte spoke on the
radio, not in
French, but in his own language, Soussou, saying that the
refugees had been
there long enough, and they should go home, or at least be confined
to
camps. Some Guineans took this as an open invitation to express their
resentment against foreigners. Liberians and Sierra Leoneans were arrested,
abused, threatened, evicted
from their lodgings and in some cases beaten or
raped.
Now the government and the UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, are
negotiating
their future. The situation in Sierra Leone in particular is
still too dangerous for
many of them to go home, though the government is
insisting that they at
least be moved well away from the border. But moving
several hundred thousand people in a country like Guinea will
be a
monumental task.
From U.S. Committee for Refugees
October 19, 2000
www.refugees.org
Threat of
Widening War in West Africa;
400,000 Refugees in Guinea Are
Vulnerable
The West African country of Guinea--which has hosted more refugees
than any
other country in Africa for much of the past decade--finds itself
edging closer to the brink of war.
The U.S. Committee for Refugees (USCR) calls on the international
community
to respond with greater urgency to the deteriorating security and
humanitarian situation in
Guinea, and to take all necessary steps to protect
an estimated 400,000 refugees from other
countries who live in Guinea and
face special protection problems. A USCR policy analyst is currently in
the
region to assess the growing dangers.
Guinea, bordering the war-ravaged countries of Sierra Leone and
Liberia, has
suffered 15 insurgent attacks that have killed some 360 people
during the past year, according to
the Guinean government. The attacks are
believed to have come from Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Uncounted numbers of
Guineans have become internally displaced in the widening violence, and the
number of uprooted people could grow if attacks continue.
Guinean troops allege that they shot down a Liberian military
helicopter
yesterday along the border between the two countries.
Liberian officials deny the incident occurred.
The governments of Guinea and
Liberia have regularly accused each other of supporting armed attacks in
border areas. The newest allegations, true or not, are certain to
heighten military tensions
and will create greater risks for residents and
refugees who inhabit border villages and camps.
The widening cross-border violence has begun to destabilize Guinea
and has
triggered a violent backlash in recent weeks against the hundreds of
thousands of Liberian and
Sierra Leonean refugees who have sought protection
in Guinea from years of bloodshed in their own
countries. After years
of relative hospitality toward refugees on their soil, Guinean authorities and
segments of Guinean society increasingly blame the refugee population for
bringing the violence of
Sierra Leone and Liberia into Guinea.
Guinean officials currently accuse Sierra Leonean refugees of
harboring
Sierra Leone's notorious Revolutionary United Front rebels-a
dubious accusation given that the
refugees originally fled to Guinea to
escape those same rebels. Refugees in Guinea have suffered a
series of
violent attacks, rapes, detentions, and Guinean government-sponsored
anti-refugee propaganda
since September. Humanitarian aid and protection for
the refugees have virtually ceased since
a UN relief worker was killed in
Guinea Sept. 17 in a cross-border attack from Liberia.
Although tensions have risen dramatically in recent weeks, the
potential for
widening violence was apparent a full year ago. A USCR
report in November 1999 warned that the
"potential for additional security
incidents remains high, particularly in border areas and refugee
zones of
Guinea.... Odds are high that security incidents will occur in
2000." USCR warned last November
that many refugees living in Guinea
"have encountered increased harassment and detention by
Guinean police and
military, including detentions, physical threats, and demands for bribes."
One of the largest international humanitarian agencies operating
in Guinea,
the International Rescue Committee (IRC), reported Monday that
"hospitality toward refugees has run
dangerously low" in Guinea and warned
that "without immediate assistance, refugees in Guinea
face widespread food
shortages." IRC and other relief agencies have temporarily suspended most
emergency aid programs in Guinea because of security concerns.
"We need assurances of security for refugee and local Guinean populations along the border, and safe access to refugee populations," IRC reported. "The government of Guinea has the responsibility to ensure the safety of refugee populations and humanitarian operations."
USCR concurs with the IRC recommendations. The Guinean
government and the
UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) should
immediately identify acceptable new
sites in Guinea to transfer refugee
camps away from their current dangerous border locations.
USCR urges the UN
refugee agency to assign--immediately--additional high-level emergency staff
to Guinea to augment the efforts of UNHCR's depleted relief contingent in
the country.
International donors, including the U.S. State Department's
refugee bureau,
should immediately pledge the $13 million or more that UNHCR
needs to strengthen its staff in
Guinea and to establish safer new refugee
camps there. The U.S. government, which currently has
U.S. military
personnel in Guinea helping to train Guinean troops, should press Guinean
authorities to
discipline their own troops and civilian militia and should
push Guinean authorities to provide proper
protection to refugees on Guinean
soil.
Liberia Refutes
Guinean Claim Of Shooting Down
Helicopter
Panafrican News Agency
October 18, 2000
Monrovia, Liberia
The defence ministry in Monrovia Wednesday refuted claims by
Guinea that it shot down a Liberian helicopter gunship recently while
on
a bombing raid of a Guinea border town.
Defence spokesman Philibert Browne told PANA the claim was a
fabrication because the Liberian army does not own a helicopter
gunship,
as the Guinean government would want the world to believe.
Guinea claimed in a news report Wednesday it had shop down a
Liberian helicopter gunship which was on a bombing mission in a
Guinean
border town, while two others escaped and headed for
Monrovia.
Browne said what the Liberian army has are three helicopters that
are
used to transport troops and supplies to the war front in the north of
the
country where government forces have been locked in battle with
dissidents for over three months now.
He said the choppers, along with one belonging to the Liberian
police,
are in service and are not built to function as gunship.
"You can visit the local and international airports to see for
yourself,
our choppers are all accounted for," Browne said.
The Liberian government recently acquired the four helicopters
that
are operated by foreign nationals believed to be Ukrainians.
Guinea at the weekend declared it was in effect in a state of war
with
Liberia following three cross-border incursions that left over 320
people dead and property damaged.
Commenting on the declaration, Browne said Liberia's primary
concern was to protect its territorial integrity from violation by
outsiders, and was therefore somewhat defensive.
He said Liberia would not be the aggressor, but would not hesitate
also to defend its territory from external aggression by any force.
Liberia and Guinea have been accusing one another of supporting
dissidents to destabilise their respective countries, claims which both
neighbours persistently continued to deny.
Guinea alleges recent raids into its territory by armed men were
supported by the Liberian government, while Liberia says dissidents
fighting in the north of the country for over three months now were
using Guinean territory with the knowledge of Guinean authorities.
Tuesday October 10 8:43 AM ET
U.N. Fights Polio in Africa
GENEVA (AP) - The United Nations (news - web sites) is
preparing for a five-day immunization campaign that it
hopes will
immunize 70 million children in 14 West
African countries against polio, the
U.N. Children's
Fund said Tuesday.
The campaign, which runs from Monday to Friday next
week,
comes as U.N. agencies embark on a final
five-year plan to wipe out the
disease by 2005 - a
target set in 1988. Taking part next week are Benin,
Burkina Faso, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,
Liberia, Mali,
Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal,
Sierra Leone and Togo.
Three more countries - Cameroon, Chad and Ivory Coast
- will
join a second round of mass immunizations in
November, UNICEF said. The
agency identified Nigeria,
Africa's most populous nation, as a key to the
effort
to eradicate polio.
The push comes as incidences of polio have been
dropping
sharply: Twelve years ago, there were at
least 350,000 polio cases around
the world. Last year
there were 7,000 cases. So far this year, there have
been 1,149 cases.
Polio is highly infectious. It usually strikes
children under
5, affecting the spinal cord and brain
and causing paralysis and sometimes
death.
The disease now is limited to 30 countries in South
and
Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. But
stamping out polio in some of
those countries - such
as Congo and Sierra Leone - is complicated by the
need
for access to war zones.
UNICEF spokeswoman Lynn Geldof conceded that
rebel-held areas
in Sierra Leone will not be reached
by next week's effort, billed as the
largest public
health initiative yet undertaken in the region.
The simultaneous effort, involving thousands of health
workers
and volunteers, is aimed at ensuring children
are immunized in a region
where frequent cross-border
movements caused by conflicts have reduced the
effectiveness of single-country campaigns.
The News (Monrovia)
Guinean
security forces invade Liberian ambassador's residence
10-10-00
Monrovia - Guinean security forces are reported to have
broke into the diplomatic residence of the Liberian Ambassador in
Conakry, ransacking the building and manhandling Liberian refugees.
The latest incident is reported to have worsen the already fluid relations
between Liberia and Guinea following a recent clamp down in Guinea on thousands
of Liberian and Sierra Leonean refugees by Guinean security forces and civilians
in retaliation to armed attacks in Guinea which said were from Liberia and
Sierra Leone. Guinea and Liberia have been trading accusations of harboring
dissidents against each other. The continuing fighting between dissidents and
government forces in Liberia's northern Lofa County is being blamed on Guinea
for allowing the use of its territory by rebels to attack Liberia, a claim
denied by Conakry. An official statement quoted by Liberia' state-owned radio
said Saturday that the government has drew the attention of the Guinean
authority to the weekend ransacking of its diplomatic premises in Conakry. The
statement described the action as a violation of Article 22 of th Vienna
Convention protecting diplomatic premises from unwarranted intrusions. The
report said Liberia requested Guinea to thoroughly investigate the violation and
bring the culprits to justice. At the same time, the Liberian government has
called on Guinea to take the necessary steps to protect the premises of the
Liberia mission in Conakry against any violation of the mission and its dignity.
There have been no reason given by Guinean authority over the forceful entry of
its forces into the Liberian diplomatic premises in Conakry. Meanwhile, the
Guinean government has reportedly granted permission for the landing of an
aircraft and the docking of a ship from Liberia to evacuate Liberian refugees
desirous of returning home. There have been calls by Liberia for Guinea to allow
the emergency landing of a Liberian aircraft or ship to repatriate Liberians
caught up by the Guinean xenophobia against foreigners following the armed
attacks on that country. An Information Ministry release now said Liberia's
Charge d' Affairs in Conakry, Siafa Fahnbulleh, informed the Foreign Ministry
that the Guinean government granted the landing rights early last week for
Liberian aircraft to land and ship dock to evacuate Liberian refugees.
The Pope's call over Guinea Killings 10/07
Report from Forecariah (in French), 10/07
September, 2000
Thursday, 7 September, 2000, 19:28 GMT 20:28 UK
Security tight in Guinea after
attacks
The authorities in Guinea have introduced tough security measures after
three rebel attacks in a week.
In the capital, Conakry, security forces carried out searches of cars and
individuals. Reports say Sierra Leoneans and Liberians were particularly targetted,
and several arrests made. The latest attack took place early yesterday Wednesday on the town of
Pamalap, close to the border with Sierra Leone. Security sources said they later chased the rebels back across the
border. BBC correspondent in Conakry says the government appears to believe
Guinean dissidents backed by mercenaries from Liberia and Sierra Leone are
carrying out the raids.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
Sierra Leonean refugees have always been on the move
Security forces in Guinea have started rounding up refugees from
neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone after President Lansana Conte accused them of
rebel activities. "I am giving orders that we bring together all foreigners in (Guinean)
neighbourhoods, so that we know what they are doing...and that we search
and arrest suspects," Mr Conte said In a nation-wide broadcast
"They should go home. We know that there are rebels among the refugees,"
the president added. Chaotic scenes broke out after the speech when gangs of youths came out
onto the streets and started rounding up Liberians and Sierra Leoneans.
According to the United Nations there are an estimated 125,000 Liberians
and 330,000 Sierra Leoneans currently in Guinea.
The president also accused the opposition leader Alpha Conde, who is on
trial for sedition, of recruiting mercenaries to topple his government.Under siege
After the speech was broadcast, the Sierra Leonean embassy was besieged
by frightened nationals who went there to seek refuge.Charles Taylor accused Guinea of harbouring rebels
About 3,000 refugees, mainly elderly people and women with babies and
young children, were reported to have gathered in the embassy's compound on
Saturday afternoon. President Conte also called for the mobilisation of the nation's forces
to fight rebels who have been involved in persistent cross-border raids.
"Civilians and soldiers, let's defend our country together. Crush the
invaders... because they have chosen war, we will fight them. The gun is
our last resort, " Mr Conte said.
Nearly 80 people have been killed in cross-border raids since the start
of this month. President Charles Taylor of Liberia has repeatedly accused Guinea of
harbouring rebels who have been attacking Liberia's northern Lofa
county. Liberia has in turn been accused of supporting Revolutionary United
Front rebels from Sierra Leone who are fighting the government of President
Ahmed Tejan Kabbah. Correspondents say the war in the region has led to the creation of a
volatile triangle along the borders of Guinea, Liberian and Sierra
Leone.
Saturday, 9 September, 2000, 22:26 GMT 23:26 UK
Guinea panic as President condemns refugees
There's been widespread panic in the Guinean capital, Conakry, after
President Lansana Conte ordered the rounding-up of refugees from Liberia
and Sierra Leone.
Thousands sought refuge at the Sierra Leonean embassy as security forces
and gangs of Guinean youths began making the arrests.
The arrests followed a nationwide broadcast by President Conte in which he
accused foreigners of being involved in recent attacks along Guinea's
borders. Eighty people have been killed in the armed-raids which began just over
a week ago. A BBC correspondent in Conakry described the situation as chaotic with
refugees being locked-up or herded into open fields. Guinea is home to
about half-a-million refugees who've fled the conflicts in Liberia and Sierra
Leone.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
RUF rebels kidnap Italian priests
BBC
Italian missionary, Vittorio Mosile, kidnapped by RUF rebels
Reports say two Italian catholic priests have been kidnapped by the
rebel militia, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) from a Guinean village
near the Sierra Leone border. The two men were taken hostage during a heavy exchange of fire between
the rebels and the Guinea Conakry army along the common border.
According to the AP, the two priests were identified as Vittorio Mosile,
64 and Franco Manganello, 62.RUF rebels go to Pamalap in Guinea Conakry for frequent supplies
They were taken hostage in Pamalap town together with an unknown number
of people believed to be Sierra Leoneans.
Last month, 11 members of the Royal Irish Regiment, together with one
Sierra Leonean solider, were captured by the militia group the West Side Boys
on 25 August. Five of the British soldiers were released last week.UN sanctions
RUF members are said to make frequent trips to the border town where
they obtain supplies in exchange for diamonds dug out of Sierra Leone.RUF rebels exchange diamonds for supplies
However reports say, a new military commander appointed by the Guinea
Conakry government has brought an end to the practice.
The new commander is said to be opposed to it because of the UN
sanctions against illegal diamond sales from Sierra Leone.
Aid workers in Pamalap say the Conakry army has repulsed the rebels who
had resorted to attacks against refugees camped in the town.
A senior figure of the Catholic church in Sierra Leone, Bishop George
Biguzzi has appealed to the rebels to immediately release the two priests.
A plethora of news on the unrest over the refugees in Guinea.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/africa/newsid_918000/918900.stm
Guinea refugee tension rises
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/africa/newsid_925000/925989.stm
AFRICAN PRESS REVIEW WITH COMMENT ON GUINEA SITUATION
UN EMPLOYEE KILLED IN GUINEA
LA
CODEM R�AGIT A L'AGRESSION CONTRE LA GUIN�E
Article taken from the French press agency AFP,
translated by Brian Farenell:The trial of the Guinean opposition figure Alpha
Cond�, which began on 12 April, concluded Monday in
Conakry after a tense weekend punctuated by a massive
roundup of foreigners suspected of hiding or
supporting 'rebels', witnesses indicated.The state security court, a court which is composed of
civlians and military members (an exception under
Guinean law), started its deliberations late in the
afternoon [on Monday]. During closing argument, Alpha
Conde took the floor for the first time and assured
that "everything they've accused [him] of is false.""All the state's witnesses are false witness," Cond�
stated....Imprisoned since December 1998 and on trial with 47
others since April for "threatening the authority of
the state and the integrity of the national
territory", Alpha Conde is accused of planning to
raise an army of mercenairies to topple the regime.He and 40 other co-accused risk a sentence of life in
prison, demanded by the prosecution.In a speech made on Saturday, Guinean president
Lansana Conte clearly accused friends of Alpha Conde
of being involved in the combats taking place at the
borders.According to Conakry, which also accused Burkina Faso
of having armed the "rebels", incursions emenating
from Sierra Leone and Liberia have caused 80 deaths
and dozens of disappearances since 1 September.President Conte also called on Guineans to "crush the
invader" and ask the international community to "free"
[d�barasser] his country from refugees. The president
had "given the order to regroup all foreigners in the
quartiers so as to find out who's doing what."Shortly thereafter, the roundup began.
According to witnesses, thousands of people,
principally Sierra Leonian and Liberian, were taken in
for questioning. The UN High Commission for Refugees
(HCR) however estimated the number at about 1000.Certain people arrested were released near the end of
Monday, while identity verification continued among
the foreigners brought in for questioning.According to the HCR, some 125,000 Liberian and
330,000 Sierra Leonian refugees, who fled the violence
in their countries, live in camps in Guinea.[...]
Ref: http://fr.news.yahoo.com/000911/1/msrd.html
Alpha Cond� sentenced to five years in prison
Wednesday, 13 September, 2000, 19:06 GMT 20:06 UK
Guinea
'inciting refugee attacks'
Guinea is home to about half a million refugees
Human Rights Watch has accused the Guinean government of inciting armed
attacks against Sierra Leonean and Liberian refugees in the country.
The New York-based organisation released on Wednesday first hand
accounts from women who say they were raped and from refugees whose homes were
looted. Its report quotes one teenage mother as saying her baby was thrown to
the floor and a soldier and one other man raped her before stealing most of
her possessions. At least one refugee is reported to have died in detention.
Guinea hosts about half a million refugees who have fled conflicts in
Liberia and Sierra Leone.Refugees leave
Human Rights Watch condemned President Lansana Conte's call on his
people to protect the country from rebel attacks by Sierra Leonians and Liberians.Conte: Believes refugees should go home
The call prompted an emergency evacuation as groups of Sierra Leoneans
who were among thousands detained in Guinea at the weekend, begun returning
home. They boarded boats at Conakry for the trip to the Sierra Leone capital,
Freetown. Reports say only ticket-holders were being accepted on the boats, but
negotiations are taking place to allow a full-scale evacuation.
Crisis talks President Conte has discussed the crisis with regional leaders.He met Sierra Leonean President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah and the chairman of
Economic Community of West African States, Malian President Omar Alpha
Konare. President Kabbah said he had been assured by Mr Conte that the safety of
refugees from his country would be guaranteed.
He said both sides had agreed to do everything to prevent the
destabilisation
of each other's country.
He called on everybody to remain calm "as the situation is under
control." President Konare has visited both Liberia and Guinea to help ease tensions.Liberia 'encouraged'
Liberian President Charles Taylor said he was encouraged by Mr Konare's
efforts. "I think his coming will help to lower tension in the sub-region," Mr
Taylor said after meeting the Malian leader.Taylor: Aircraft on standby to evacuate Liberians from Guinea
"In this country we have issued strict instructions that no Guinean
national should be touched. We believe that there should be reciprocity," the
Liberian president added.
He said Liberia had air transport on standby to evacuate Liberians from
Guinea and said President Conte had a "moral duty" to protect Liberians
in Guinea.
In a BBC interview, Mr Taylor said his country was prepared to exchange
security personnel and information that would lead to the arrest of
trouble makers in both countries.
There have been reports of reprisal attacks against Guineans in
Freetown, and troops surrounded the Guinean embassy in the Liberian capital Monrovia
after threats on Guinean citizens there.
UN Scales Down W. Africa Operation
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sept. 18Filed at 12:05 p.m. ET
GENEVA (AP) -- The U.N. refugee agency said Monday it has scaled down operations along the Guinea-Liberia border in West Africa because of fighting that left one worker dead and another missing. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees stopped work in the Guinean town of Macenta since the head of its mission, Mensah Kpognon, 50, was killed Sunday by gunmen at his home. Another staffer, Sapeu Laurence Djeya, was kidnapped during the unrest. ``There is still fighting in the area,'' said UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond. Nonessential UNHCR personnel were to remain in their homes and all dependents of international staff were being taken to Conakry, the capital of Guinea, Redmond said. Guinea hosts more than 460,000 refugees, one of the largest refugee populations in Africa. About 330,000 are from Sierra Leone and 126,000
from Liberia. Because of security concerns, UNHCR operations -- and those of other agencies and charities -- may be scaled back, Redmond said. The main impact of the cutback would be on 10,000 Liberians who
crossed into Guinea about a year ago, said Kris Janowski, another UNCHR spokesman. The Liberians are dependent on the agency for food and would probably start running out of supplies only after several weeks, Janowski said. The remaining 108,000 refugees in the area have been there longer and have their own garden plots to supply food. The agency's main service to
them is to make sure authorities don't force them back into Liberia, where
they are perceived as opposition to the government. ``They might be in trouble,'' Janowski said. A still greater concern would be if the pullback spreads westward, where the agency is caring for 300,000 refugees from Sierra Leone. Liberia has accused Guinea of harboring rebels who crossed into northern Liberia in July and have been fighting government forces there ever
since. Most of the refugees in the Macenta area are Liberian, but some Sierra Leonean refugees have fled into the area recently following attacks by Sierra Leonean rebels. Sunday's attack at the U.N. worker's home came less than two weeks
after three UNHCR staff members were killed by pro-Indonesia militiamen in a
West Timor office of the agency. ``Why are innocent, unarmed humanitarians like Mensah Kpognon, a
father of four children who was simply trying to make the world a better place,
being struck down in the most brutal way?'' asked U.N. High Commissioner
Sadako Ogata, who was in Herat, Afghanistan, when word came of the latest
attack. The U.N. agency renewed its appeal for international help in finding
and freeing Djeya. Redmond said UNHCR had contacted all governments in the area,
particularly Liberia, because Djeya was last seen being taken by her abductors
toward Liberia. She was in Macenta after delivering supplies from the UNHCR
office in Danane, Ivory Coast. There was no indication that the staff in Macenta had been targeted
becausethey worked for the agency, UNHCR said.Many other buildings in the town were burned as the assailants wereretreating from Macenta following a pre-dawn raid on the town's
military garrison, said UNHCR. An unspecified number of Guineans were also killed inSunday's raid, UNHCR said.
GUINEA: Scores of civilians flee border village
ABIDJAN, 25 September (IRIN) - Scores of civilians have been fleeing
the Guinean border village of Guekedou in anticipation of further armed
attacks from Liberia, UNHCR spokeswoman Delphine Marie said on Friday in
Geneva. "People are reportedly moving north toward Kissidougou Prefecture, as
well as other locations in Upper and Middle Guinea, and Conakry," she added.
Armed men from Liberia attacked the Guinean town of Macenta on 17
September, killing a UNHCR official and abducting another. Marie said the Guinean
Ministry of Territorial Administration, Decentralisation and Security
reported possibly 17,000 internally displaced people in Kindia and
21,000 in Forecariah following attacks on the two locations. Both areas border
northwestern Sierra Leone.
(30 September) BBC
Attack in Guinea kills nearly 70Guinea is home to about half a million refugees
Reports from Guinea say at least 67 people have been killed in an
attack by an armed group on two villages near the border with Liberia.
Security officials say three government soldiers were among those
killed onFriday night in the southern Macenta region.The officials say eight of the attackers were captured, while the rest
escaped with some communication equipment and weapons.
Correspondents say this is the fourth such attack in Guinea since the
beginning of the month. Thirty-five people were killed in a similar incident in the same area
last month, including an aid worker for the United Nations refugee agency.Regional tensions
The government says the rebels are operating from Liberian territory
with the support of guerrilla groups from Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone.
The Liberian Government has denied the accusations, which have set off
tensions around the region. Guinea hosts about 500,000 refugees who have fled conflicts in Liberia
and Sierra Leone. But earlier this month, President Lansana Conte accused them of aiding
the rebels and has told them to leave Guinean civilians joined enthusiastically in hunting down refugees, in
what correspondents described as an outpouring of resentment against
foreigners, which had been building up for years.