East Timor violence raises civil war fear

Members of the UN mission in East Timor wait to be evacuated from Dili yesterday. The international body began evacuating all non-essential staff after clashes between rival ethnic groups in the tiny country that prompted Australia to commit more than 1,000 troops to help restore order. New Zealand, Malaysia and Portugal are also sending forces. PHOTO: AFP

Four people were killed, one of them burned to death while he was trying to defend his home and the others shot, witnesses and hospital officials said. At least 27 people have been killed since the upheaval erupted Tuesday.

Gangs roamed the streets of Dili for a second day Sunday, setting fire to homes and businesses. Gunfire was also heard but there was no immediate word on casualties.

One group severely beat a man they accused of hiding guns. Foreign reporters intervened, and he was rushed bleeding to a hospital by aid workers.

With chaos spreading, the United Nations evacuated employees' families and nonessential staff to Darwin, Australia.

The UN envoy to East Timor, Sukehiro Hasegawa, said more peacekeepers were needed to halt the violence.

The UN has a tiny force of peacekeepers in East Timor and around 2,000 Australian troops were either on the ground or in transit. Australian sent the troops after East Timor's government said earlier this week it could not control the situation. New Zealand, Malaysia and Portugal also agreed to help.

"It has begun to quiet things down, it's a trickier operation than some people think," Australian Prime Minister John Howard told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Sunday. "Nobody should assume that it's just a simple walk-in-the-park military operation it's quite challenging."