People cheered as UN troops entered

Senior UN officers said the troops are due to arrive within the next few weeks and would allow the UN to extend its deployment in areas held by the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF), especially the crucial diamond areas in the east of the country.

The decision came as the UN announced the deployment on Wednesday of troops in Kailahun, an eastern region held by the RUF for 10 years.

BBC West Africa correspondent Mark Doyle says the near collapse of the UN mission last year - in the face of a rebel offensive - has galvanised the UN into pouring resources into Sierra Leone.

He says the UN is trying to prove that it can run a successful peacekeeping operation.

Warm welcome

The occupation of diamond-rich Kailahun by UN peacekeepers was the second such move in two days.

There should now no longer be any doubt over our request for peace

Rebel commander

The troops were reportedly welcomed with open arms by the rebels, who said they were tired of fighting.

Local RUF commander Tom Sandy, who welcomed the peacekeepers, said:

"There should now no longer be any doubt over our request for peace. It is here and would never go away."

On Tuesday around 2,500 UN troops, mainly from Bangladesh and Nigeria, deployed in and around the town of Makeni, the former rebel headquarters.

The BBC correspondent described the troop movement into Makeni as a milestone for the international force in its attempt to re-establish the credibility of UN peacekeeping.