Prime Minister Jean Chretien says Canada will send as many as 600 soldiers to East Timor. They will be part of a United Nations peacekeeping force.

The island of Timor lies between Indonesia and Australia. It is home to about 700,000 people.

Two weeks ago, the eastern half of the island voted to become independent from Indonesia. The Indonesian army and local military groups who oppose independence have launched violent attacks ever since.

The East Timor capitol city of Dili has been turned into a burning, looted ghost town.

For the past week Indonesian President B.J. Habibie has refused to allow United Nations peacekeeping troops into his country. He said that the conflict in East Timor was a matter for Indonesians to work out between themselves.

But yesterday the Indonesian President changed his mind. It appears he has given in to pressure from governments and human rights activists from around the world. President Habibie says he will now allow the UN troops in to stop the violence.

Prime Minister Chretien expects Canada to have troops in East Timor within 30 days.

Right now, Canada has about 3,900 peacekeepers on 22 missions around the world . Many are working in Eastern Europe. UN peacekeepers were sent to the Yugoslavian province of Kosovo at the beginning of the summer . The peacekeeping troops are making sure that the people living in war-torn Kosovo are protected from violence.

1. What have the Indonesian army and local military groups who oppose independence launched ever since?