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Liberian President Says Rebels Are No Threat to Capital VOA News 9 Feb 2002 19:28 UTC 
Liberian President Charles Taylor says there is no chance that rebel forces will be able to capture the capital, Monrovia. Mr. Taylor dismissed speculation that the capital is under threat. He said at a news conference (Saturday) at the presidential mansion that people who think they can capture Monrovia and run people out of the city are mistaken. The president also said Liberian civilians should not fear the state of emergency he delcared Friday, and he said he will do nothing to punish the people of Liberia. He said the state of emergency affects security personnel as well as civilians. And he said that under his declaration, only police or the elite anti-terrorist unit will be allowed to carry guns. Rebels forces, Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy, said they captured the town of Klay about 40 kilometers from the capital this past week. The battle was the closest to Monrovia since fighting began in mid-2000, and it prompted the president to impose the state of emergency. The government now says it has pushed back the rebels and has retaken Klay. But rebel leaders told the Reuters news agency they still control the town and will push toward Monrovia unless Mr. Taylor steps down. Mr. Taylor once again criticized a U.N. arms embargo against Liberia that he said has encouraged the rebellion. The United Nations imposed the arms embargo because of Liberia's support for rebels in neighboring Sierra Leone. Mr. Taylor is himself a former rebel leader, who was elected in 1997 at the end of a seven-year civil war that devastated the West African nation.
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