Dili – Hundreds of East Timorese troops who gathered outside Dili's presidential palace Wednesday to demand the dismissal of a senior commander have left the complex and will meet President Xanana Gusmao later today to discuss their grievances, officials said.

Some 404 unarmed members of the East Timor Defense Force (FDTL) had assembled next to the presidential palace Wednesday morning to demand the replacement of Colonel Falur, commander of 1 Battalion FDTL, based in Baucau, a presidential source told Lusa.

The troops were invited to a patio inside the palace for talks with President Gusmao, who promised that a special committee would be set up to investigate their complaints and solve them if they returned to barracks.

However, these discussions with the Timorese leader did not satisfy the dissident troops who remained inside the presidential palace until Wednesday afternoon before leaving after a promise of a second meeting with Gusmao later in the day.

In comments to Lusa, Gusmao said his initial encounter with the soldiers "had gone badly", declining to give more details of the meeting.