Australian troops began arriving in East Timor on Tuesday to help enforce a state of emergency declared after a double assassination attempt that left the tiny nation's president in hospital with triple gunshot wounds.
An Australian warship also arrived off the Dili coast on Tuesday to support the first of 200 fast reaction troops sent to reinforce international security forces as doctors said President Jose Ramos-Horta would remain on life support until next week.
In the Australian city of Darwin, where Ramos-Horta was airlifted with gunshot wounds in the chest, back and stomach, doctors were planning more surgery.
"His condition remains extremely serious, but by the same token, stable," Royal Darwin Hospital general manager Len Notaras told reporters, adding the President would need more surgery in the next 24-36 hours.
"He will be in an induced coma until at least Thursday, intensive care until Sunday or Monday of next week," he said.
In the capital Dili, East Timor's interim president Vicente Guterres declared a state of emergency and appealed for calm, after apparently coordinated attacks against the president and prime minister threw the young nation into a fresh crisis.
Around 1,600 U.N. police, backed by about 1,000 Australian soldiers, were patrolling Dili and other cities amid fears of fresh violence by rebel soldiers, whose leader Alfredo Reinado was killed in the surprise early morning assault.
"The government of East Timor is in firm control," said Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, ahead of a visit to the troubled nation later this week.
INTERNATIONAL FORCES CRITICISED
The commander of East Timor's military, Brigadier General Taur Matan Ruak, called for an investigation into Monday's attacks and questioned the role of international forces.
"There has been a lack of capacity shown by the international forces who have primary responsibility for the security within Timor Leste (East Timor)," he told a news conference.
He also urged the public and media to persuade Reinado's followers, who had fled into the jungle, to return for dialogue.
Schools, businesses and government institutions were open in Dili, as local police stopped and checked cars, but the calm appeared uneasy and residents admitted they were nervous.
Meetings and protests are banned under the emergency, and all citizens must stay home between the hours of 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
