Washington, DC — The Liberian capital of Monrovia is experiencing some of its worst fighting in seven years, following a weekend of heavy bombardment as rebel forces advanced into the city center and government troops loyal to embattled President Charles Taylor fought to hold their positions.
The violence ended a month-long truce that had raised hopes for international intervention to separate and disarm the warring parties. The Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), which had hoped to get a thousand or more troops on the ground this week, is still discussing how to get the force into place.
West African leaders, along with United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, have appealed to President George Bush for a significant American role in the operation, but no U.S. decision has been announced.
The fighting in Monrovia alarmed the city's residents, who faced two rebel assaults on the city in June that uprooted more than 100,000 people and left an estimated 500 dead.
One eyewitness reported "tens of thousands of people walking with their belongings" on Saturday and Sunday. As people trekked towards the city seeking a safe place to escape the bullets, government militia forces stripped them of their goods. "They take away radios, cell phones, money," he said. "It's like the last big pay day for them."
The eyewitness, an employee of an international aid organization who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said fighting erupted when government troops attacked rebel positions late Friday, because Taylor wanted to bury his mother in his hometown, which is in rebel territory.
On Sunday, the rebels, known as Lurd (Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy), advanced to the two bridges that link downtown Monrovia to Bushrod Island, the western suburbs of the city. The rebels took control of the areas surrounding the Freeport as well as New Georgia Estate, a residential area where they retreated late Sunday afternoon.
On Monday, fighting escalated, with the Associated Press reporting at least 60 deaths from mortar fire. The fighting has led to suspension of food and other humanitarian assistance in the capital, and many aid workers are being evacuated.
Meanwhile, in Accra, Ecowas-sponsored peace talks involving Lurd and another armed faction known as Model (Movement for Democracy in Liberia), along with representatives of Taylor's government and the country's political parties, have moved close to an agreement.
A 45-page document drawn up by Ecowas mediators synthesizing the views of the Liberian participants, was scheduled for signing on Tuesday. However, several participants said on Monday that additional negotiations will be required before final agreement is reached and an interim government to take over from Taylor is formed.
The deployment of Ecowas troops has also been delayed. While Nigeria as the largest country in the region with the biggest army has been expected to take the lead in the operation, an Ecowas negotiator, speaking by telephone from Accra, said "Nigeria is being very cautious this time around."
Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo wants to avoid a repeat of 1990, when, the official said, "everyone encouraged them to send troops, the international community promised everything and eight years later, they were still paying for everything." Liberia peacekeeping in the 1990s is reported to have cost Nigeria close to $4 billion, at a time when the country was ruled by a military regime.
As an elected leader, Obasanjo is already facing criticism at home on Liberia, especially for his offer of asylum to Taylor, who has been indicted for war crimes by a United Nations-backed Special Court in neighboring Sierra Leone. Legislative approval would be needed before troops could be deployed, according to Dr. Joshua Iroha, who served as Nigeria's ambassador to Liberia from 1990 to 1998. But he also emphasized that his government is an active part of the Ecowas effort to find a lasting solution in Liberia.
"The crisis goes far beyond the borders of Liberia and if our sub-region is to make any progress we must stamp out this crisis," said Iroha in an interview from Accra, where he is assisting the former Nigerian military ruler, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who is chief Ecowas negotiator.
Ecowas has called for a force made up not only of troops from Nigeria and other member states but also from South Africa and Morocco. A significant U.S. presence is also essential, according to Princeton Lyman, a former American ambassador and senior State Department official, writing in the Washington Post on Saturday. "Liberians have mixed feelings about West African troops, especially Nigerians, because of the harsh and sometimes venal record of Nigerian troops when Nigeria led the peacekeeping force in Liberia and Sierra Leone in the early 1990s," he said.
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In Monrovia, the situation on Monday continued to worsen. Although Lurd leader rebel leader Sekou Damate Konneh told AllAfrica on Saturday that his forces have not taken the offensive, his forces have continued their advance.
The eyewitness who spoke with AllAfrica by telephone from Monrovia and who lives in the Steven Tolbert estate in the northwest suburb of the city, said people were fleeing as the fighting seemed to get closer. "My wife and children went to her father's, which is closer to downtown," he said. "I decided to stay because once you go, fighters come in and loot everything and sometimes move into the house." He tries to stay in touch with his office and with family members by cell phone.
