World Notes LIBERIA

Members of Liberia's Gio tribe have long suspected that President Samuel Doe, who belongs to the Krahn tribe, would like to eradicate their people. Lately their fears have been reinforced as Doe's troops moved into northern Nimba county, a Gio stronghold and hotbed of opposition to the government. The army's ostensible purpose is to rout a ragtag band of perhaps 200 insurgents, but the soldiers have exceeded that mandate, looting and burning towns and firing on Gio civilians.

No accurate death tally is available, but several hundred are thought to have died. Up to 100,000 Nimba residents have fled their homes, crossing into the neighboring Ivory Coast or Guinea, or hiding out in the bush.

The U.S., a strong backer of Doe, has assigned two military advisers to counsel the Liberian command on how to restore and maintain army discipline. But asked when the killing would stop, one Monrovia-based diplomat gave this reply: "When the army runs out of ammunition."