United Nations officials in Sierra Leone say they have lost contact with another Zambian UN unit of 200 soldiers. However, they say that the situation is still unclear. Over the past week rebel fighters have taken more than 300 peacekeepers hostage. The missing 300 troops are mainly from Kenya, India, Zambia and Nigeria. The rebels are reported to have taken the peacekeepers' weapons and uniforms after detaining them in two towns in the east of the country.
In response to a UN appeal to leading members to bolster the force, the British Government has sent a team of military experts to the country. The crisis is the most serious since the rebels signed a peace agreement with the Sierra Leone government last July to end eight years of civil war.
