Bolivia army patrols town under martial law

By Simon Gardner

LA PAZ, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Bolivian troops patrolled a restive city in the impoverished nation's north before dawn on Sunday, the mayor said, as the death toll rose to 30 from days of clashes between government and opposition supporters.

Troops fanned through the streets of Cobija city early on Sunday after forces grouped in the airport for two days when leftist President Evo Morales declared martial law on Friday in Pando province, where Cobija is the capital.

"Troops left the airport and went through all the streets of Cobija. It was early this morning," Cobija Mayor Luis Flores told Reuters by telephone.

Flores said troops were in control of the city but a Reuters witness said the town was deserted on Sunday morning and there was no sign of troops.

Bolivia, an unstable country at the heart of South America, has been rocked in the past week as supporters of rightist opposition governors stepped up their rejection of Morales' plans for deep socialist reforms.

Morales is among a new generation of leftist leaders in Latin America allied with strongly anti-Washington President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.

The government nearly doubled the death toll from deadly clashes as troops continued to find bodies from a Thursday clash in Pando between mostly pro-government peasant farmers and backers of Morales' rightist opponents.

"We are nearing the 30 mark," government minister Alfredo Rada said overnight.