Liberians mob arriving peacekeepers

By Barnaby Phillips BBC, Monrovia

A warm welcome greeted the first of the 3,000 plus troops

The first group of Nigerian peacekeepers to descend from the helicopter across the tarmac from me, immediately assumed defensive positions both around and in the grass of Monrovia's Robertsfield airfield.

Both it and the second helicopter had flown in from Sierra Leone, on loan from the UN peacekeeping force in that country.

They flew through heavy rain for two hours to make this very welcome appearance.

To get to Robertsfield they had to fly over the city of Monrovia and I'm told that people came out on to the streets when they heard the choppers.

They wouldn't have been able to see much, but they certainly cheered when they heard the peacekeepers arriving overhead.

Although only about 30 Nigerians disembarked from the first two helicopters, throughout the morning and afternoon more troops did arrive.

In fact there's been a steady relay of helicopters and one fixed wing aircraft, so there are now more than 100 peacekeepers here.

They certainly looked a lot more impressive than the fighters we see on Monrovia's streets.

They tend to be ill disciplined, many of them teenagers or even younger, and none of them in uniform.

Whereas these Nigerian peacekeepers are in uniform, well armed, have helmets, and certainly look like the real McCoy.

Restricted movements

But although they had a very wet welcome, touching down in torrential rain, the Liberian people soon made it clear they were extremely happy to see them.

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Hundreds of civilians spilled onto the airfield, shouting "we want peace" and mobbing the first Nigerian soldiers, holding them up in the air.

There's delight here that their long nightmare may be about to end.

One man said "we have to trust these Nigerians, we pray they can turn the situation around".

The airfield itself though isn't in any immediate danger.

The main rebel movement the Lurd are now some distance from here in the northeast of the city.

But a potential threat could develop in the next few days, as the Model rebels, who are further down the coast, may push their way up and try to take the airfield, cutting off Monrovia in the process.

But for now it's quite peaceful here.

Liberians want a halt to the killings

But the same can't be said of the rest of the capital.

There was a lot of shooting last night, and a colleague of mine had a bullet come through his bedroom window at one point, so you can imagine what the situation is like.

Both the rebels and the government have said they'll cooperate with the peacekeepers, but in the coming days Liberians will want to see the Nigerians move beyond the confines of the airport and start to have an impact on the dangerous streets around Monrovia.

However, the peacekeepers may wait to see the result of current diplomatic moves to persuade the rebels to fall back from the city, before they begin moving in.

For now, their movements are restricted around the airfield, due to their still small numbers.