US detachment arrives in Freetown to support military team in Liberia

The expert team arrived in the Liberian capital Monrovia last week to evaluate the situation.

Liberia has been embroiled in near constant warfare since the 1990s and the conflict has fuelled a humanitarian crisis across west Africa, where several countries are struggling to feed and house Liberian refugees with their meagre resources.

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Spokesman for the US military team in Liberia, Navy Lieutenant-Commander Terrence Dudley, told AFP late Monday that the support detachment had arrived in Freetown.

"A support detachment has arrived in Freetown over the weekend. There is three helicopters and around 100 troops. They are there to support our team," he said, adding that the troops arrived aboard a C-130 airplane which is now back to Dakar.

"Our mandate is supposed to end at the end of the week," he added.

Two western journalists in Freetown confirmed the presence of the three helicopters and a C-130 transport plane on the tarmac at Freetown airport.

US President George W. Bush indicated Monday he was open to deploying troops for a "limited" role in stabilizing Liberia, but explicitly made President Charles Taylor's departure a precondition.