THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 1, 1996 TAG: 9605010400
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: STAFF AND WIRE REPORT
DATELINE: MONROVIA, LIBERIA LENGTH: Medium: 100 lines
U.S. Marines from three Norfolk-based amphibious ships shot and killed three Liberians firing toward the U.S. Embassy Tuesday as fierce battles engulfed the capital, littering its streets with bodies a day after a cease-fire collapsed.
The shootings, the first exchange of gunfire involving U.S. troops since Liberia's civil war reignited in early April, came as new factional fighting left the 10-day-old, U.S.-brokered truce in tatters.
One Marine was grazed, possibly by a cartridge ejected from his own weapon, but did not require hospitalization in what officials described as three separate assaults in and around the embassy and ambassador's residence.
The first occurred when eight Liberian attackers opened fire on the Marines in the southeast corner of the embassy. Marines returned fire with their M-16 rifles and M-60 machine guns, said officials. Two Liberians were killed and one wounded in that assault.
The second attack came an hour later in the same location. The Marines took cover but did not return fire. The attackers' shots were poorly aimed and did not directly threaten the Marines, said officials.
In the third attack, an hour later, six Liberians opened fire on the Marines, who fired back, killing one Liberian.
There are about 260 Marines ashore in and around the U.S. Embassy and ambassador's residence. Commanded by Col. M.W. Forbush, they are part of a reinforced rifle company assigned to the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit based at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
They are from three Norfolk-based ships that remain off the coast of Liberia where they were sent in mid-April to assist in the evacuation of American and allied civilians wanting to leave.
The ships, carrying 1,500 Marines and 1,500 sailors, were sent from the Adriatic Sea. They are the amphibious assault ship Guam, dock landing ship Portland and amphibious transport dock Trenton.
At an army barracks a few blocks from the embassy, the floor of a clinic was awash in blood as scores of victims were carried in or dragged themselves through the door. Doctors said at least three people had died and 60 were wounded, many civilians.
Fire from mortars, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades echoed through the city, forcing George Moose, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, to cancel talks at the embassy with government, peacekeepers and factional leaders.
Moose, in a telephone interview from the embassy, warned of a ``major catastrophe'' if the fighting continued. He blamed warlord-turned-politician Charles Taylor, whose standoff with a rival April 6 provoked two weeks of warfare culminating in the cease-fire.
``Taylor will be held responsible,'' Moose said. ``If he persists in taking power, he should expect a strong international reaction.''
In Monrovia's Mamba Point diplomatic section, where the embassy is located, rival factions battled for control through the afternoon. At least nine bodies were scattered on the streets of the beachfront neighborhood. It was unclear whether those killed died while fighting or were caught in crossfire.
Similar chaos spread across the capital. Chawki Bsaibes, a Lebanese businessman who runs the Mamba Point Hotel, said Tuesday's fighting was the worst he had seen in the city.
At the clinic, located at the Barclay Training Center army barracks, rocket-propelled grenades smashed into the grounds as doctors treated patients. Civilians wailed in pain and thrashed on floors and flimsy stretchers.
One foreigner, French freelance photographer Axel Grousset, was treated for shrapnel wounds suffered when a grenade fell into the street near his vehicle. His injuries were not believed to be serious.
By about 5 p.m., fighting in the capital had subsided, and by nightfall the area was quiet.
The latest fighting broke out Monday at Barclay, where warlord Roosevelt Johnson has been holed up since April 6 with hundreds of supporters trying to evade arrest by government troops.
The troops are loyal to Taylor and Alhaji Kromah, both of whom sit on the country's six-person ruling body. The government accuses Johnson of starting Monday's violence by attacking the Executive Mansion, near Barclay, as government leaders attempted to hold their first meeting since April 6.
Moose, however, accused Taylor and Kromah of prolonging the conflict by firing on Barclay and flooding the city with fighters after African peacekeeping soldiers gave up their positions Tuesday.
The fighting violates an April 19 truce negotiated by peacekeepers, warlords, government officials and foreign diplomats, including the U.S. ambassador.
The original standoff in early April was provoked by the government's attempt to arrest Johnson on murder charges linked to violations of an August 1995 peace accord.
Johnson refused to surrender, and battles quickly spread across the city, prompting the United States to evacuate Americans and other foreigners. MEMO: This story was compiled from reports by staff writer Jack Dorsey and The
Associated Press.
ILLUSTRATION: Liberia
The Marines are from three Norfolk-based ships off the Liberian
coast: the amphibious assault ship Guam, dock landing ship Portland
and amphibious transport dock Trenton.
by CNB