Most of those who left now live in camps around the capital, Monrovia.

But in Gbarpolu county, 100 kilometres north of Monrovia, thousands of local people have been emerging from the bush as army troops engage pockets of Lurd fighters.

Many of the displaced people are said to have been held hostage in rebel hide-outs in the dense Belle Forest, before regaining their freedom when government troops broke through.

Critically ill Liberia's Health Minister Peter Coleman said there was an outbreak of acute diarrhoea among the returning people - who he said had been surviving largely on wild fruits.

Taylor declared a state of emergency in February

Taylor declared a state of emergency in February

Mr Coleman said there were no accurate statistics on the number of people who have now made their way out of the bush.

But he said, "considering the populations in those towns prior to the outbreak of fighting there, the people in question are in larger number than those who fled to other areas."

He described the situation of the returning locals as "more serious than what we see in camps around Monrovia," and appealed for international assistance to go their rescue.

A health team has been flown to the region to deal with the diarrhoea outbreak and related cases and some of the critically-ill amongst the population have been brought to Monrovia for intensive care.

Last November aid agencies working in Gbarpolu County withdrew from the provincial capital, Bopolu, because of the fighting.