Most fighters in Sierra Leone war disarmed says UN
Most fighters in Sierra Leone's brutal civil war have turned over their weapons to UN peacekeepers.
The commander of the UN peacekeeping force says a disarmament program aimed at securing a peace has worked.
And a spokesman for the rebel Revolutionary United Front says it has ceased to be a fighting force and is now a political party.
Rebel spokesman Eldred Collins said: "There is no more RUF. Now it is RUFP - a political party to pursue political objectives," Mr Collins said. "Peace has returned to Sierra Leone."
Disarmament officially ended on Saturday, but several hundred combatants are due to hand over their arms on Sunday and Monday.
After the last remaining fighters lay down their weapons, the program will have disarmed about 45,000 rebels and pro-government militiamen, the acting commander of the UN peacekeeping force Major General Agwai says.
The UN-sponsored program has taken in 1.5 million rounds of ammunition and thousands of weapons, including rifles, mortars and anti-aircraft guns since it got underway earlier this year.
Disarmament was initially scheduled to end November 30, but has been repeatedly delayed by rebels calling for the release of their jailed leader, Foday Sankoh, and sporadic clashes in eastern diamond-mining districts.
Despite the disruptions, Agwai said the exercise was "very impressive considering the fact that this was a voluntary exercise."
Local media, however, have reported that some rebels are hiding their weapons across the border in neighbouring Liberia.
