SOLOMON ISLANDS: The most wanted man in the Solomon Islands, warlord Harold Keke, surrendered to Australian troops and police from his jungle hideout on the island of Guadalcanal yesterday.
In what was hailed as a major step forward in the bid to restore law and order to the ailing South Pacific nation, Mr Keke gave himself up after talks with Mr Nick Warner, head of the Australian-led intervention mission to the Solomons.
Mr Keke, former head of an ethnic militia called the Malaita Eagle Force, is accused of ordering the killing of up to 50 villagers on the remote Weathercoast of Guadalcanal. He was formally arrested on a charge of robbery. Three of his supporters were also taken into custody and around 40 firearms, including 28 high-powered rifles, were seized.
The four men were flown to an Australian warship, HMAS Manoora, which last night was on its way back to the Solomons capital, Honiara, where they will be held until they can face trial for their alleged crimes.
Announcing the arrest in Parliament in Canberra, Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer said that Mr Keke's reign of terror on the Weathercoast had "caused a great deal of anxiety and fear for many Solomon Islanders over recent years".
He said: "A full investigation of crimes, including murder allegedly committed by Harold Keke and his group, can now proceed. It's fair to say that today's events are the greatest success so far achieved by the intervention force."
The arrests open the way for the Australian-led regional assistance mission, which includes contributions from New Zealand and Pacific nations, to open a police post on the Weathercoast.
Mr Downer added that Mr Keke's detention sent a powerful message to other militants in the South Pacific archipelago to surrender their weapons under an amnesty which ends August 21st.