By Jill Gralow
DARWIN (Reuters) - The brother of East Timor President JoseRamos-Horta on Thursday accused United Nations security forcesof behaving like "bloody cowards" and said they hid, ratherthan defended the wounded leader against rebels.
Arsenio Ramos-Horta, in Darwin to visit his brother who hasjust had surgery on two bullet wounds that partially destroyedhis right lung, said he personally cradled the Nobel PeacePrize winner in his arms as U.N. troops refused help.
"They should have come straight away, not to waste time.They are bloody cowards," he told Reuters.
Arsenio Ramos-Horta was in the presidential compound whenthe gunfight broke out on Monday between presidential guardsand rebel soldiers led by Alfredo Reinado, who was killed inthe pre-dawn attack.
The United Nations rejected accusations its officers leftJose Ramos-Horta bleeding for more than 30 minutes withouthelp, releasing emergency call logs showing just two minutesbetween when the president was found and the arrival of anambulance.
The log said the first emergency call was received at 6.59a.m. in Dili, and U.N. police arrived at 7.15 a.m., locatingRamos-Horta inside the compound near a bamboo fence at 7.23a.m. The ambulance arrived at 7.25 a.m.
But Arsenio Ramos-Horta said U.N. personnel refused tooffer help from the time they arrived and did not leave thecover of roadblocks set up near the presidential residence.
"They should have taken some action, not sit there on theroadblocks," he said. "He would have been in a bettercondition."
Ramos-Horta is in a serious but stable condition inAustralia's Royal Darwin Hospital, where he was taken on lifesupport after emergency treatment at an Australian militaryhospital in Dili.
East Timor's military chief, Brigadier-General Taur MatanRuak, has also demanded an explanation from internationalsecurity forces as to how rebel soldiers were able to attackRamos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao.
Ruak said there had been "a lack of capacity" shown byinternational security forces in the country, which include1,100 Australian and New Zealand soldiers, as well as more than1,600 United Nations police from 40 countries.
Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told parliamenta full investigation would be carried out and internationalforces would "take account of what, if any, lessons were to belearned".
Smith said he had also spoken to his Portuguesecounterpart, who offered extra assistance from Lisbon for EastTimor if required in the wake of the assassination attempts.
In Dili, East Timor's Prosecutor-General Longinhos Monteirosaid on Thursday that he had issued arrest warrants for sixmore people suspected of involvement in the attacks onRamos-Horta and Gusmao, who escaped injury.
That brought the total number of suspects so far to 24.
"We are giving time for police to execute the warrants. Wehave 21 days to prepare the dossiers," Monteiro said, aftermeeting interim president Fernando de Araujo.
The police have not yet arrested the suspects.
The atmosphere in Dili remained calm, followingparliament's decision to extend the state of emergency for afurther 10 days to February 23.
Arsenio Ramos-Horta said his brother would be taken offventilators assisting his breathing later on Thursday ahead ofanother round of surgery, expected on Friday or Saturday.
Surgeons this week said it would be several weeks beforethe president began to be mobile, and up to six months beforehe fully recovered after discharge in around a fortnight.
(Additional reporting by Tito Belo and Ahmad Pathoni inDili, and Rob Taylor in Canberra; Writing by Rob Taylor andSara Webb; Editing by David Fogarty)
