Citation
WASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuter) - U.S. Secretary of State Warren
Christopher said Sunday that the evacuation of Americans from Rwanda is
over and described the situation in the African country as very
confused, very tense and very dangerous.
As far as I know there are no Americans that are unsafe there,
Christopher said on NBC's Meet the Press
programme.
He said 123 Americans had been flown to Nairobi and others had crossed
the border to Burundi and Zaire by truck convoy.
There were a total of some 230 Americans living in Rwanda who were told
to flee the tribal bloodshed there.
Christopher said that U.S. Ambassador David Rawson had decided against
calling in the 330 Marines sent to the Burundi capital Bujumbura to
assist in the evacuation, so the Americans left without a military
escort.
He said one or two Americans may have decided to remain.
Christopher said that rebel forces were said to be within a few hours
of the Rwanda capital of Kigali.
The U.S., France, Belgium and Italy are evacuating their nationals from
Kigali, scene of heavy fighting between government forces and rebels of
the Rwanda Patriotic Front.
Thousands of people have been killed in Rwanda in an orgy of violence
following the death last week of President Juvenal Habyarimana in a
plane crash believed to have been caused by a rocket attack.
(c) Reuters Limited 1994
