54 Soldiers Freed; U.N. Chief to Call for Buildup

They arrived here Sunday night under the cover of darkness, their sunken eyes and wobbly legs visible only in the flickering lights of a United Nations cargo plane. Some had no shoes. Others wore borrowed clothing. Three were taken away in an ambulance.

In all, 54 soldiers, among more than 500 U.N. peacekeepers taken hostage by rebels in Sierra Leone this month, were flown back to U.N. headquarters here after being freed in neighboring Liberia through a deal brokered by Liberian President Charles Taylor. As many as 300 peacekeepers remain unaccounted for.

The ongoing ordeal is expected to play prominently in a report to be presented today in New York to the Security Council by Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

The document--coming at a critical juncture in U.N. peacekeeping operations worldwide--is to call for a major U.N. military buildup to counter further aggression by the Revolutionary United Front, or RUF, the anti-government rebel group that has shattered a peace agreement signed in July that ended eight years of civil war.

It also is likely to suggest new sanctions against the rebels to prevent them from mining and exporting diamonds, the primary source of revenue for their war machine.

In his first report to the U.N. since the crisis began May 1, Annan is expected to request an increase in the U.N. mission’s military strength from the currently mandated 11,000 troops to 16,500, with the option of adding even more if the RUF does not return to the terms of last year’s peace accord. Under the agreement, rebel leaders were given top government positions and granted amnesty for wartime atrocities in exchange for laying down their arms.

The premise for the proposed buildup is to give U.N. peacekeepers the capacity to respond with deadly force when provoked--something they have been ill-equipped to do.

Many of the captured U.N. soldiers gave up their weapons and military supplies without a fight--and were even forced to hand over their uniforms and shoes. U.N. officials say the peacekeepers were never meant to be drawn into a full-scale conflict, but critics say many troops were deployed without the minimum equipment and preparation required by the U.N.

The relative calm prevailing in Freetown, the capital, in recent days is being attributed to the arrival of several hundred British troops who are not part of the U.N. effort. The British came to evacuate their citizens but have said they will stay until the U.N. regains its footing.

In addition to more troops, Annan is expected today to ask the Security Council for:

* Two additional infantry battalions, including one with air capability for rapid deployment;

* One light artillery unit;

* Armed helicopters, and;

* A maritime unit to include six armed patrol boats.

U.N. officials say they have come to understand that Sierra Leone is a test case of the world organization’s resolve not to be bullied by thugs. Fail here, one official said, and there may be no tomorrow.

“This is a real test for the United Nations,” a Western diplomat said. “Down the road, with Iraq and Ethiopia-Eritrea, it is only going to get tougher.”

In his report, Annan is expected to indicate the seriousness of the crisis for his organization, but also to issue a challenge to big Western powers, most notably the United States, to support the beefed-up peacekeeping effort. So far, the Clinton administration has refused to offer troops but has pledged financial support.

Any lack of resolve on the part of the international community to stand behind the Sierra Leone effort, Annan is expected to argue, would undermine the organization’s credibility by building false hopes in Sierra Leone and throughout the world.

Already, many people in Sierra Leone are deeply disappointed in the U.N. They blame the peacekeepers for not taking a stronger stance when the rebels threatened them over enforcement of the peace accord’s disarmament provisions. The first U.N. hostages were taken in the town of Makeni when rebels raided an arms decommissioning center run by the U.N.

Despite the problems, the mood Sunday night on the runway at Lungi International Airport just outside Freetown was buoyant. Kenyan peacekeepers grinned at reporters and gave the thumbs-up sign as they were escorted off the loading ramp of a C-130 cargo plane.

Maj. Jeganathan Ganase, a captured Malaysian military observer believed to be suffering from malaria, delivered bearhugs to colleagues on the bustling tarmac.

“I am fine, thank you,” he said. “I am fine. I am fine.”

Norwegian military observer Cmdr. Knut Gjellestad, who was captured in Makeni on his bicycle, appeared feeble but in good spirits. He briefly told reporters that he was grateful to be freed, and he thanked the people of Norway for keeping him in their thoughts.

U.N. officials allowed no further contact with the released hostages, fearing that anything they might say could jeopardize the lives of those still missing.

For every tear of joy shed Sunday night, there was a silent cry of humiliation for those left behind. The situation remains so confused that U.N. officials cannot say with certainty how many soldiers really are missing.

“Pinning this number down is like pinning jelly to a wall,” U.N. spokesman David Wimhurst said.