World IN BRIEF : PERU : Amnesty Ruling in Massacre Appealed

Relatives of 15 Peruvians killed by troops in a 1991 massacre will appeal a court ruling upholding a controversial amnesty that absolved four officers accused in the case, their lawyer said. Francisco Soberon said his clients would go to Peru’s Supreme Court to appeal a decision made Friday by a Lima high court that upheld the amnesty for military forces accused of rights abuses in a 15-year war against Maoist guerrillas. An earlier ruling by a lower court said the amnesty did not cover the Barrios Altos massacre in November, 1991, when troops stormed a party in a Lima house attended by suspected guerrillas and shot to death all 15 people present. Four officers, including an army general who headed Peru’s intelligence service, were held responsible for the killings.