Fujimori acts against military in Peru

President Alberto Fujimori of Peru has ordered regional military commanders visiting the capital for a military ceremony to return to their posts immediately.

The order was contained in a terse, one-sentence message to the armed forces chief, Nicolas Hermoza Rios.

The BBC South America correspondent says the president's move comes amid rumours that a coup was being planned by military leaders.

It follows a highly public disagreement between Mr Fujimori and General Hermoza over who planned the military operation last April which freed a group of hostages being held by left-wing guerrillas in Lima.

Senior generals had warned that any attempt to discount the role of General Hermoza would be regarded as an insult against the armed forces as a whole.

Five years ago, the army - and General Hermoza himself - backed President Fujimori's own coup, in which he dissolved Congress and replaced it with a smaller body dominated by his supporters.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service