The families of two deputy ministers who were apparently...

The families of two deputy ministers who were apparently killed by government fighters in June for their alleged involvement in a failed coup to depose President Charles Taylor, demanded that the government release the bodies and conduct a full inquiry. At a meeting of people from Liberia's northern Nimba county in Monrovia, elders reported that Vice-President Moses Blah had confirmed the deaths of John Yormie, the deputy minister of national security and Isaac Vaye, the deputy minister of public works. Blah had been dismissed by Taylor and placed under house arrest for his alleged part in the 4 June coup attempt, but was later reinstated. Taylor alleged that several military commanders and senior government figures tried to overthrow him while he was out of the country attending the opening of peace talks with two rebel movements in Accra. Cynthia Yormie, who burst into tears on hearing of her husband's death, told reporters: "It is unfair for my husband to be killed like this. All we want now is for the government to give us his body so we can have a descent burial". She added: "We received information that General Benjamin Yeaten killed both John and Isaac in Nimba on Friday June 6." The BBC said Taylor had told parliament that Yormie and Vaye were both dead without explaining how they had died.