Sierra Leone.

At the beginning of May 2000, hostile action by the United Revolutionary Front (RUF) led to a rapid deterioration of the security situation in Sierra Leone, threatening to undermine the Lome Peace Agreement. Barely two months after the Security Council decided to expand the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), rebel forces attacked United Nations peacekeepers in Makeni, killing four soldiers and detaining two battalions. As of 17 May, the total number of wounded personnel was 30; 11 people were missing; and over 500 troops had been surrounded and detained. The military movements by the RUF, threatening to attack the capital Freetown, involved the use of armoured personnel carriers, weapons and uniforms seized from UN peacekeeping forces.

On 4 May, the Security Council strongly condemned the actions of the RUF and expressed its outrage at the killing of United Nations peacekeepers. The Council demanded that the RUE end its hostile actions, unconditionally release "immediately and unharmed" all detained personnel, and comply fully with the terms of the Lome Agreement. It considered RUF leader Foday Sankoh responsible for the rebels' actions and stated that he "must beheld accountable, together with the perpetrators". On 16 May, Mr. Sankoh was captured in Freetown after he had disappeared on 8 May when a peace rally in front of his residence turned violent, killing 19. He is currently being held by the Government of Sierra Leone at an undisclosed location.

On 11 May, the Council held a debate on the UN mandate in Sierra Leone in which calls were heard to give the Mission a peace-enforcement role and more resources and equipment to deal with the crisis. Reminding the Council that UNAMSIL, configured as a peacekeeping force, was not equipped to fight except in a defensive mode, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said: "Given the new situation, we have to consolidate and reinforce our troops so that they can defend themselves and their mandate effectively, so that they can help stabilize the situation." On 19 May, the Council, convinced that the deterioration in security conditions on the ground necessitated rapid reinforcement, decided to increase UNAMSIL's strength to 13,000, including 260 military observers.

As of 17 May, UNAMSIL had deployed a total of 10,246 troops, from Nigeria, India, Kenya, Ghana, Guinea, Jordan and Zambia. Additional Bangladeshi, Indian and Jordanian battalions were expected to arrive within the next weeks. The United Nations was also in talks about the possibility of deploying additional Nigerian troops, which had formed the backbone of the Military Observer Group (ECOMOG) of the Economic Community of West African States that had been in Sierra Leone until April.

On 15 May, 137 detained peacekeepers were released by the RUF after the personal intervention of President Charles Taylor of Liberia. The Secretary-General's Special Representative and head of UNAMSIL, Oluyemi Adenji of Nigeria, travelled to Nigeria for a summit meeting aimed at preserving the peace process, attended by nine African countries of the region. Returning from Sierra Leone, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Bernard Miyet on 15 May said that the population had dearly demonstrated their desire for the presence of UNAMSIL. By 12 May, an estimated 20,000 newly displaced people who had fled to Freetown began to return to their homes. The United Nations Children's Fund is trying to assist former child soldiers after human rights officers raised concern that in the Masiaka area some 25 to 30 per cent of the combatants were children between the ages of 7 and 14.

On 5 May, the United Nations Staff Council expressed its outrage at the killing of UN peacekeepers and said that effective protection for UN personnel worldwide needed to be reinforced.