24363: (news) Chamberlain: Haiti-UN Wounded (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Greg Chamberlain <GregChamberlain@compuserve.com>

   PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 26 (AP) -- One Brazilian peacekeeper was wounded
Saturday and the charred body of a man apparently burned alive with a tire
around his neck lay in the deserted street of a slum where shots rang out
and people peered fearfully from barred windows.
   It was the second day of violence in Bel Air, where at least two
civilians were shot and killed Friday, allegedly by Haitian police, and the
U.N. mission reported two Brazilian troopers were shot by snipers.
   Bel Air is a warren of alleyways lined with tin-roofed homes on a
hillside behind the National Palace where Haitian police have been
struggling for months to regain control from armed militants loyal to
ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
   Brazilian troops in armored cars with mounted submachine guns moved into
the neighborhood early Saturday and came under fire, said Cmdr. Carlos
Chagas Braga, a spokesman for the 7,400-member U.N. peacekeeping mission
led by Brazil.
   A bullet from a high-velocity weapon ricocheted off one vehicle, sending
fragments into a soldier's face and shoulder, said Chaga. He said two other
Brazilian peacekeepers were shot in the arm in two similar attacks Friday.
   "These injuries were minor," Chaga said. At least nine peacekeepers have
been wounded since the mission began in June.
   He said in both instances U.N. troops did not return fire because of a
policy of "shoot only when you can see your target."
   Witnesses too scared to give their names said a man in civilian clothes
accompanying the police was captured and burned alive by residents, who
accused him of being an "asayant" -- Creole for a hired gun.
   Tire tracks remained around the neck of the corpse, indicating he had
been "necklaced" -- killed by a burning tire set around his neck.
   "We are ready to die for Aristide," who was ousted by an armed rebellion
a year ago, said one resident, looking up at a white U.N. armored car.
   Bel Air residents claimed the peacekeepers often shoot at them.
   "Before only the police would come in here and kill us," a man said on
condition of anonymity. "Now peacekeepers are coming in to the corridors
(alleyways) and just opening fire."
   Residents also charged that the peacekeepers stood by Friday while
Haitian police shot and killed at least two men in Bel Air. The
peacekeepers said they did not collaborate with police in any Bel Air
operations on Friday.
   Haitians in Port-au-Prince say scores of people have been killed by
police backed by U.N. troops since September, when Aristide followers
stepped up protests to demand his return from exile in South Africa.
   At least 270 people have been killed in the capital, including 25 police
officers. Aristide supporters plan large demonstrations Monday, the
anniversary of his ouster.