UN, militia clash in Congo

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo -- UN troops have killed several militia fighters during heavy clashes in eastern Congo after a joint operation with the government army was aborted by a mutiny among its soldiers, the world body said yesterday.

UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Marie Guehenno was expected in Democratic Republic of Congo later yesterday for an unprecedented 10-day visit to the world body's biggest peace force.

UN blue helmets are battling an array of local and foreign militias as well as coping with chaos in the Congolese Army, which it is meant to be helping restore order ahead of polls.

Cooperation with the army unravelled during a major operation against an eastern militia last week when Congolese commandos mutinied and ransacked a UN base, forcing the mission to be abandoned.

UN military spokesman Major Hans-Jakob Reichen said even after calling off the operation peacekeepers came under attack from militia fighters on Sunday, triggering a heavy firefight involving helicopter gunships in which several attackers died.

''Yesterday, there was heavy fighting between the militia and the UN. There was firing on the UN positions. We retaliated with mortars and gunships that fired 32 rockets. There have been some fatalities amongst the militia," he said yesterday.

Last week's mutiny, in which UN sources say rebellious troops pointed guns in peacekeepers' faces and UN helicopters fired rockets at the mutineers, highlighted the obstacles facing the 17,000-strong UN force, known by its French acronym MONUC.

MONUC is supporting the Congolese army, forged from various factions which fought in the 1998-2003 war, in a mission to restore order across a chaotic country the size of Western Europe in time for elections tentatively slated for June 18.

But political preparations are dragging, the militia are proving hard to defeat, and human rights organizations say even where military operations are successful, government troops are often just as prone to rape, loot, and kill civilians.

European Union defense ministers met in Austria yesterday to discuss sending EU troops to help ensure security during the elections.

Guehenno would be reviewing security ahead of the polls -- the first free national elections for more than 40 years, officials said.

''He is arriving as we are entering a crucial stage in Congo's transition. He will be reviewing and discussing security issues as well as the elections," a MONUC spokesman said.

Other officials said Guehenno would examine what Congo's peacekeeping requirements would be after elections, given that UN Security Council members were anxious not to foot MONUC's $1 billion annual bill any longer than necessary.

President Joseph Kabila has delayed promulgating an electoral law which the elections commission says is necessary to finalize a timetable for the polls, casting further doubt on whether the announced June 18 election date can hold. ''He [Guehenno] will have some strong messages to deliver to the main political players," the official said.