Liberia: Violence flares in Buchanan

Violence erupted on Saturday afternoon in Liberia’s second city, Buchanan, about 120 kilometres southeast of the capital, Monrovia. According to reports from Buchanan, fighters from the rebel Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL) ran amok, looting properties and harassing civilians. One civilian was later confirmed dead. Witnesses who fled the area and later contacted IRIN talked of MODEL fighters letting off weapons at random intervals, causing civilian casualties.