Sierra Leone rebel chief captured

By Jane DoeFREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) – Sierra Leone’s notorious rebel chief was shot, seized and
stripped naked by pro-government troops, prompting spontaneous street celebrations Wednesday
in the capital of this war-weary nation.

Foday Sankoh, whose rebel group has killed thousands and terrorized civilians in this
impoverished West African nation, was captured early Wednesday next door to his home in
Freetown – the spot where he disappeared nine days earlier, witnesses said.

Tipped off by civilians, pro-government militiamen confronted Sankoh and his bodyguards,
sparking a brief gun battle that left the rebel leader wounded in the leg. Sankoh was then captured,
disrobed and taken to the government’s defense headquarters in Freetown, the witnesses said.

A photo taken by one witness showed Sankoh crammed into a four-wheel drive vehicle, with one
captor holding him by the neck and another gesturing toward the rebel leader as if showing off a
prize.

At the request of Sierra Leone, a British helicopter flew Sankoh to the nearby Lungi Airport.
Britain then took him to a ‘secure location,’ and he was being held by the Sierra Leone
authorities, said British Lt. Cmdr. Tony Cramp, spokesman for the British forces in the country.

A British statement said its troops Wednesday killed four rebels from the Revolutionary United
Front in a firefight at an important road junction 10 miles east of Freetown’s airport.

The British forces, responded after coming under fire on a patrol with Nigerian troops, suffered
no casualties, though one Sierra Leonean woman was injured, the statement said.

Britain has insisted its forces are only backing up U.N. troops and will not get sucked into the
civil war. The shooting appeared unrelated to Sankoh’s capture, British officials said.

As word of Sankoh’s capture spread through the capital, civilians rushed into the streets to rejoice.
Government soldiers armed with rocket launchers and automatic rifles chased away the crowd
and maintained a heavy presence in front of the defense compound.

‘The masses must decide what to do with him,’ said S.K. Shyllon, an engineer who drove to the
compound.

‘But I say he is not fit to exist,’ Shyllon added. ‘He made the people of this country suffer for
nine years.’

Government spokesman Septimus Kai Kai said: ‘A lot of these things are being sorted out now.
Our main concern now is that we can … bring peace to our country.’

Sankoh disappeared last week when thousands of demonstrators opposed to him gathered in
front of his home in Freetown. His rebel fighters opened fire on the civilians.

Nineteen people were killed.

Since then, there were daily rumors of Sankoh’s whereabouts. Some said he had fled to rebel
strongholds in the interior of the country, others said he had slipped into neighboring Liberia.
There also were unconfirmed reports that he had suffered a heart attack, or was dead.

Sierra Leone’s fragile 10-month peace accord unraveled this month when the rebels seized 500
U.N. peacekeepers and resumed clashes with pro-government forces.

Sankoh has been widely blamed for undermining the peace effort.

It was not immediately clear how the rebels would respond to Sankoh’s detention. He was
captured in 1997 and sentenced to death the following year.

His rebels responded with an offensive that culminated with an invasion of Freetown in January
1999. West African troops drove them out weeks later. Sankoh was released to sign a peace deal,
receiving amnesty and a government post.

Liberian President Charles Taylor helped negotiate the release of 139 U.N. hostages over the
weekend. Late Tuesday, 93 of them were flown from the Liberian capital, Monrovia, to the airport
at Lungi on board a U.N. aircraft.

Oluyemi Adeniji, the U.N. special representative to Sierra Leone, welcomed them back, saying
their contribution would continue and the peacekeeping mission would succeed, according to
U.N. spokesman David Wimhurst.

Taylor, who has close ties to the rebels, said Liberian negotiators were trying to secure the release
of the remaining 350 captives, most of whom are believed to be Zambian. The talks were taking
place at a rebel base in Sierra Leone, he said. It remained unclear who was handling negotiations
on the rebel side.

Up to 40 of the captive peacekeepers are languishing with illnesses and injuries, including
gunshot wounds, Taylor said.

There was no word on the seriousness of their ailments.

The rebels’ bases, generally crude camps cut out of the rain forest, have little medical care
available and no modern facilities.

During their eight-year campaign against the government, the rebels killed tens of thousands of
people and mutilated and dismembered many more in a bid to gain power through intimidation.