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Page last updated at 13:25 GMT, Friday, 10 October 2008 14:25 UK
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'Deaths' in Guinea mine protest

File photo of a sign at a bauxite mining factory in Fria, Guinea.
Guinea is a leading exporter of bauxite, used to make aluminium

Two people have been shot dead by security forces during a protest against a Russian company mining bauxite in Guinea, witnesses have said.

Scores of people are reported to have been wounded, seven of them seriously, during the clashes in Mambia.

The BBC's Alhassan Sillah in Guinea said locals had blocked trains carrying bauxite to the coast for export.

The mining company, Rusal, denies accusations that it failed to honour an agreement to provide public services.

One resident said the company had signed an agreement in 1984 between the local community and the company for the provision of electricity, water and protection from environmental hazards.

But Rusal said it has been providing $200,000 (£116,000) each month for the community.

Demonstrators have attacked company property and blocked railway lines used to transport bauxite for export to the port in the capital, Conakry, our correspondent says.

They also looted or vandalised several shops and set public buildings on fire, prompting the government to send in troops from the Kindia region.

Once security forces took control of Mambia, protesters are reported to have taken up positions in fields around the town.

Guinea is one of the world's largest reserves of bauxite, which is used to make aluminium.

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