Rebels said to mistreat refugees

Abidjan - Refugees living in camps in Sierra Leone are regularly raped, kidnapped and mutilated by rebels, under the noses of…

Abidjan - Refugees living in camps in Sierra Leone are regularly raped, kidnapped and mutilated by rebels, under the noses of peacekeepers, a leading international human rights organisation said yesterday.

Human Rights Watch said it had collected evidence of 14 rapes, including cases of girls as young as 11, "118 cases of abduction of villagers, and three murders, as well as several cases of mutilation and forced labour" in the past two months.