Despite promises by Indonesia's leaders to impose martial law in East Timor, armed militias with Indonesian army and police backing took their scorched-earth policy to new extremes yesterday, setting much of the capital, Dili, ablaze and rounding up thousands of people before an uneasy calm descended on the city last night.
The East Timor resistance leader, Mr Xanana Gusmao, was released from Indonesian custody in Jakarta yesterday but, fearing for his life, sought shelter in the well-fortified British embassy, where he is expected to spend the next few days.
In a moving appeal for an end to the terror imposed on a defenceless people he said: "I promise as a free man I will do everything to bring peace to East Timor."
As the carnage in East Timor continued unabated, with accounts of bodies littering the streets of Dili and severed heads being mounted on sticks, the former Portuguese colony's spiritual leader, Bishop Carlos Belo, was forced to flee under an assumed name from the town of Bacau to Darwin in north Australia.
There he appealed to the international community to "act urgently, immediately to protect the people" and said he would travel to Rome to report directly to Pope John Paul II.
The UN compound in Bacau was attacked by automatic fire at 10 a.m. and the 138 international staff were evacuated to Australia yesterday afternoon.
International anger is growing over the Indonesian military's incitement of the bloodshed and the destruction of the tiny country's infrastructure, but there was still little prospect of world powers defying Indonesia's insistence that it alone will retain control of security.
Australia warned Indonesia yesterday it had 48 hours to prove martial law was curbing violence in East Timor. It fell short of an ultimatum, however; rather it said if the warning were ignored, Indonesia would face increased international pressure to allow peacekeepers into the territory.
The Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, said he was sceptical about the likely success of martial law in controlling pro-Jakarta militias, who have killed hundreds since the ballot on August 30th in which East Timorese voted overwhelmingly for independence.
Yesterday the UN Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, also gave Jakarta 48 hours to stop the violence. A UN Security Council delegation will meet Indonesian leaders today.
Mr Annan said the world community would have to consider other means to keep order if martial law failed. Diplomatic sources in Jakarta said Mr Annan is negotiating for Australia to lead a peace force with an eventual complement of 6,000 troops.
A pro-Jakarta militia leader, Mr Herminio da Silva Costa, said in West Timor: "We will burn [East Timor] down and start all over again . . . We are ready to go to the jungles for 20 years."
Indonesia's Antara news agency said more than 10,000 refugees arrived in Atambua, West Timor, yesterday. The UN said more than 40,000 East Timorese had fled their homes and many others were heading into West Timor.
Liam Phelan adds from Dili: Last night was relatively quiet, but as the sun rises on the fifth day of the siege of Dili, sporadic gunfire is resuming and fires are burning across the city.
The UN compound came under the heaviest fire yet yesterday afternoon. Phone lines have been cut and an Australian photographer, Steve Tickner was shot at while in a school adjacent to the UN compound. He was unharmed but the room he was in was strafed. UN staff are today attempting to get out on the streets and survey some of the damage.