British troops face UN threat to shoot By Tim Butcher in Freetown and George Jones UNITED Nations peacekeepers from Nigeria have threatened to shoot British soldiers in Sierra Leone after several days of growing tension between the two allies. Last night Gen Sir Charles Guthrie, the Chief of the Defence Staff, tried to defuse the situation. He flew to the Nigerian commercial capital of Lagos from Freetown after a two-day visit to assess how the British operation was working. British troops have been told that they are allowed to shoot back at anyone who fires at them. But senior officers were anxious to ensure that this did not happen. Geoffrey Hoon, the Defence Secretary, promised yesterday that the troops would not be drawn into the civil war. He told MPs that the soldiers, backed by a Royal Navy force, would stay no longer than was necessary, but refused to set a precise date for their withdrawal. However, Britain is likely to come under increasing pressure to use its forces to supply arms, food and water to troops loyal to the Sierra Leone government. This will pose an acute foreign policy problem for the Government. Iain Duncan Smith, the shadow defence secretary, accused the Government of allowing "slippage" on the withdrawal timetable and not giving troops clear rules of engagement. With Special Forces operating in the countryside and Paratroops patrolling Freetown and manning road blocks, Britain was "to all intents and purposes running the day-to-day operation of UN forces", he said. The swift collapse in relations between the allies underlines the sensitivity of the operation. The tensions rose after the British bulldozed Nigerian bunkers when they took responsibility for the area. The Nigerians did not object when the plan was aired, but there is a growing sense in Freetown that they resent the Paras' role in restoring order to a battlefield in their backyard. The Nigerians have demanded a full list in advance of every patrol and task to be carried out by the British forces. The Army regards this as unworkable. The Nigerians then threatened that unless the Paras sought written permission, they could be shot on sight "for suspicion of being white mercenaries". British troops are continuing to man their observation posts and carry out patrols on foot and in Land Rovers in Aberdeen, a suburb of Freetown, as commanders seek to defuse the tension. The Nigerian move is part of the UN force's effort to reassert its control after several weeks of setbacks when it was overwhelmed by Revolutionary United Front rebels who took 500 peacekeepers hostage. Since British troops arrived a week ago the situation has stabilised considerably. Mr Hoon said that the deployment had been an "outstanding success". Freetown remained calm and the rebels were "now on the back foot", he said. Nigeria is the largest contributor of troops to the peacekeeping mission. Its army is proud of its tradition as one of Africa's most effective forces. Since Sierra Leone's government was overthrown in 1997, Nigerian forces have led international efforts to restore order and have paid a high price in lives lost. British troops from an 800-strong battle group formed round the 1st Bn the Parachute Regiment are based in Aberdeen, where they have secured the UN headquarters. It is an area normally patrolled by troops from Nigerian Bn 1. Military standards between the British and Nigerian armies differ considerably and some of the observation posts built by the Nigerians were bulldozed to allow British positions to be built. The work was done after discussions with local Nigerian commanders. The Army regards posts as useful only if they afford a clear sight of all approaches, with open fields of fire. The Nigerian positions were dotted with huts, bushes and other cover. The British also needed to build secondary positions from which they could cover the front position. Again, the Nigerians had carried out this work to a different standard. All British troops have been briefed on the need to co-operate with the UN. The first sign that things were going wrong was when the senior Nigerian officer, a colonel, stopped taking visits from anyone in the Paras below the rank of colonel. This was impractical, as the appropriate British officer was based 10 miles away across a wide estuary at Lungi airfield. Gen Guthrie made a particular effort to reassure UN commanders that his troops were not trying to sideline the 8,700-strong UN force. But the reality is that the British force is more effective than the UN force 10 times its size. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! 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