Reporter arrested on Comoros' troubled island

MORONI, June 24 (Reuters) A Comorian reporter researching possible human rights abuses was arrested today on the troubled island of Anjouan, where rising political tensions have forced hundreds of people to flee, witnesses said.

Forces loyal to Anjouan's newly inaugurated president detained Elarif Minihadji, a member of the Comorian Association of Human Rights, as he tried to cover the arrival of an African Union (AU) delegation to the island.

''Anjouan's police arrested Elarif, but we don't exactly know the reasons,'' said local journalist Salim Mohamed, who was with him when he was arrested.

Local officials were not immediately available for comment.

The AU team is visiting the coup-prone archipelago to try to mediate an end to tensions after Anjouan elected Mohamed Bacar president in a vote that was boycotted by five other candidates and unrecognised by the international community.

Comoros' national government wants AU troops to disarm Bacar forces who shot dead two federal soldiers in May.

Fears of fighting and political reprisals have caused hundreds of residents to flee the island by boat since the June 10 vote, which went ahead despite the federal government's decision to delay the election because of security concerns.

The AU, like the European Union and the United States, has refused to recognise the Anjouan elections.

The second round of local elections took place today without trouble on the two other islands of Grande Comore and Moheli, local residents said.

Last year's national presidential elections were the Indian Ocean archipelago's first peaceful transition of power since independence in 1975. It has suffered 19 coups or attempted coups since then.

REUTERS JT RN2140