Child soldiers freed in Sierra Leone

Child soldiers have fought on all sides in the war

Rebels have released more than 100 child soldiers as a result of peace talks currently under way in the Sierra Leone capital, Freetown.

Local reports say they were handed over to aid agencies earlier this week, and the Revolutionary United Front say they are about to free 200 more to be reintegrated into society.

Aid agencies say rebels are estimated to have thousands of children in their ranks.

The move is another positive sign that progress is being made towards ending the 10-year civil war in the country, after an announcement on Wednesday that rebels and pro-government militias had agreed to start disarming.

The children have long been cajoled by their adult masters to carry out unbelievable atrocities, and most are likely to remain traumatised for a long time.

A joint statement after the talks said both sides had agreed to give up child soldiers who had fought for them after being abducted from, or cajoled, to leave their villages.

Disarmament

The RUF, which has brought havoc to the country since it embarked on its rebellion 10 years ago, says it will begin a programme of disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration into society without delay.

The rebels have committed many brutal atrocities

There is also agreement that government forces would deploy in the northern districts of Kambia and Port Loko, where the RUF rebels and militia fighters would begin disarming on Friday.

This followed attacks last week by Kamajor militias on RUF rebels in eastern diamond rich areas in the most serious breach of a cease-fire agreed six months ago.

Both sides will hand over their weapons to United Nations peacekeepers.

The UN peacekeeping force numbers about 12,000 and is the largest in the world.

The joint statement, from rebels and the Civil Defence Force - an umbrella group of pro-government militias - said that the disarmament in the two districts would be completed by the end of May.

They said they would work to ensure a "cessation of all hostilities and to that effect hereby instruct all... combatants to desist from any hostile activity".

Key figures at the talks were Justice Minister Solomon Berewa, the RUF's Omrie Golley and the deputy defence minister, who is the CDF's national co-ordinator.

UN envoy Oluyemi Adeniji hailed the agreement as "very positive", saying that "major strides" toward peace had been made since the cease-fire.

A peace accord agreed in Lome in 1999 collapsed a year ago after hundreds of UN peacekeepers were taken hostage by rebels.

But in recent months, the outlook has been more positive, with UN peacekeepers advancing into some rebel-held areas.