Rebels attacking the Sierra Leone capital of Freetown yesterday took control of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah's State House in the city centre, aid agencies in touch with the city said.
The rebel commander, Mr Sam Bockarie, speaking by satellite telephone from his guerrilla hideout earlier, said the rebels would agree a ceasefire with Nigerian-led Ecomog West African troops if the detained rebel figurehead, Mr Foday Sankoh, was freed.
He said his guerrillas, who thrust into Freetown from mountain hideouts east of the city, had taken over most of the city and President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah might have left.
He said his men had seized the broadcasting station, and fighting was mostly centred on Waterloo town north of the capital. "We even have the seaport. Fighting is at Waterloo now, and we are trying to get rid of the elements [of peacekeeping troops] that are putting up stiff resistance there."
Freetown residents said the Nigerian embassy had been set on fire.
Mr Bockarie said President Kabbah might have crossed over to Lungi, site of Sierra Leone's international airport and main base of the Ecomog force.
There has been no word from the President since he made an unscheduled one-day visit to Mali on Monday.
Residents said Mr Kabbah had been working from a residence in the city's West-end district since he was reinstated a year ago by Ecomog troops.
He had not occupied the State House, which was no longer used as the seat of government.
They said the rebels were active in East-end district and parts of Central district, including the State House, while Ecomog was holding West-end.
"If Sankoh is released and handed over to us we are ready to cease fire. And we will see to it that we can secure the repatriation of these Nigerian soldiers, because they are our brothers," said Mr Bockarie, whose guerrilla name is "Mosquito".
Once freed, "the leader will tell the nation what next", he added.
Mr Sankoh was sentenced to death in October on treason charges stemming from a coup that overthrew Mr Kabbah in May 1997.
His rebels backed the military junta that took power until Nigerian-led Ecomog troops evicted it last February and reinstated Mr Kabbah.
Mr Bockarie appealed to the Nigerian military ruler, Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar, whose troops dominate the 15,000-strong Ecomog, saying: "We are appealing to our big brother, His Excellency Gen Abubakar, to instruct his commanders to turn our leader over to me."
The rebel commander said his fighters had freed detained junta soldiers and coup convicts at the maximum security Pademba Road Prison near the city centre.
"We have freed a lot of our prisoners that have been kept there before. They are with us now, in fact we have armed them, they are fighting, too," Mr Bockarie said.