Sydney - Out of patience, Australia yesterday began using military force to get more than 200 Middle Eastern asylum-seekers off a navy troop ship they have refused to leave for two weeks and on to the tiny Pacific island of Nauru.
But the operation was stopped almost immediately after Nauru called for a halt to the use of force when the first six illegal immigrants taken ashore staged a sit-in protest on a bus that was taking them to a makeshift detention camp.
A spokesman for Australian Immigration Minister Mr Philip Ruddock said the government had decided "enough was enough" after waiting for the passengers of the HMAS Manoora to agree to have their asylum claims processed on Nauru.