Posted on 07/20/2002 11:54:30 AM PDT by HAL9000
The Spanish soldiers withdraw small island (witnesses)
Saturday July 20, 2002 - 18h46 GMT
JBEL FOAMED (Morocco), 20 juil (AFP) - the Spanish soldiers deployed on the Leila/Perejil small island started their withdrawal of the Leïla/Perejil small island, confirmed with the AFP several witnesses who were on Jbel Moussa (Moussa hill) overhanging the coast.
About fifty Spanish soldiers, with their parcellings, had been evacuated by helicopters with 18H30 GMT, specified these witnesses. The Spaniards deployed on the island since July 17, were 75 approximately, according to information's given by Madrid.
This withdrawal intervenes at the time when Washington and Madrid announced the concluding of an agreement between Morocco and Spain to regulate the conflict which opposes them since July 11 in connection with this small island of the Straits of Gibraltar.
Three helicopters landed not very front 18H00 GMT on the small island where they embarked the first groups of soldiers and their parcellings which had been laid out beforehand on the zone of landing.
They redécollé in direction of the east, where the Spanish enclave of Ceuta is. A third helicopter landed little afterwards.
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