Ex-soldiers end Haiti stand-off

The ex-soldiers' surrender followed talks with government officials

Ex-soldiers in Haiti who seized two former military buildings, have ended a tense 24-hour stand-off with police and UN peacekeepers, officials said.

The men were demanding 14 years of back pay and the reinstatement of the armed forces, which were disbanded in 1995 by ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

The soldiers say the move was illegal and they continue to demand back pay.

Their leader, Milot Laguerre, said they were surrendering voluntarily because of the danger to civilian supporters.

Tensions had mounted after ordinary Haitians supporting the ex-soldiers' cause began throwing rocks at the international troops.

Mr Laguerre told local radio: "We military were ready to die instead of surrendering because we are quite within our rights, but we did not want to put the lives of the civilians accompanying us in danger."

Negotiations

A police official told local media that the men had surrendered because "finally they understood we were serious".

The peaceful denouement in the northern city of Cap-Haitien followed negotiations with government officials - although no details of the talks were released.

Those present included Interior Minister Paul Antonine Bien-Aime and former Army Col Jean-Claude Jeudi, who was not part of the demonstration.

UN officials said a second protest in a former army barracks in Ouanaminthe, a town on the border with the Dominican Republic, had also ended.

A 9,000-strong UN peacekeeping force has been Haiti's only real security force since the army was dissolved.