Sierra Leone’s Leader Ousted, Mutineers Say

Mutinous troops in Sierra Leone said Thursday they have overthrown President Joseph Momoh and are setting up a new government. Momoh was reported to have fled to Guinea in a helicopter.

The coup report came the same day that a West African peacekeeping force began deploying in Liberia, whose war spilled over into Sierra Leone and became a major problem for Momoh. Liberian rebel leader Charles Taylor invaded Sierra Leone to punish Momoh for sending troops to join the peacekeeping force.

Soldiers on the streets of Freetown the capital of Sierra Leone, complained to reporters of being unpaid for three months and getting insufficient food. They said they were fed up with trying to fight a war against rebels in the south while corrupt senior officers remained in Freetown. They said they did not even have enough ammunition.