Area: 71,740 sq km (27,699 sq mi)
Population (1998 est.): 4,577,000 (including more than 450,000 Sierra Leonean refugees temporarily residing in Guinea and Liberia)
Head of state and government: Presidents Maj. Johnny Paul Koroma and, from March 20, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah
As 1998 began in Sierra Leone, the army battled militia forces loyal to ousted president Ahmad Tejan Kabbah in Bo, the country’s second largest city. To aid the militia, ECOMOG (Economic Community of West African States Cease-Fire Monitoring Group) tripled the number of its troops in the country. This multinational force, composed largely of Nigerian soldiers, pledged to remove the military government and return Kabbah to power. Pro-Kabbah forces made significant gains in the diamond-rich eastern part of the country. Following aerial bombardments in mid-February, ECOMOG forces captured Freetown and forced Lieut. Col. Johnny Paul Koroma to flee along with other leaders of the military junta. On March 10 Kabbah returned to the capital, and 10 days later he named a new government. The UN lifted an oil embargo that had been enacted in response to the coup, and ECOMOG forces loosened their blockade of the country. Although Kabbah’s government and ECOMOG troops controlled the capital, rebels loyal to the ousted military government continued to fight in the east and south of the country. Throughout the year ECOMOG battled the rebels, with the city of Bo changing hands several times. Fighting late broke out in the north, and at the year’s end the rebels were threatening Freetown.
The ongoing fighting exacerbated an already critical humanitarian situation. More than 180,000 Sierra Leonean refugees in Guinea were threatened with starvation, and additional refugees fled the country as rebel activity intensified. The fighting, combined with blockades, contributed to widespread hunger and disease in rebel-controlled areas. According to the UN World Food Programme, half a million people inside the country were threatened with starvation.
In a step toward reconstruction, the UN organized a conference in July in Freetown to plan rebuilding efforts. The government continued to call on the international community for humanitarian assistance. President Kabbah also appealed for help in disarming rebel militias and reintegrating their members into society.